


Night of the Lions

by AlexandriaLives



Series: Hypnagogic [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Black Paladin Keith (Voltron), F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Green Paladin Pidge (Voltron), Red Paladin Lance (Voltron), Voltron Paladin to Paladin Psychic Bond, Yellow Paladin Hunk (Voltron)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:20:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24971446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlexandriaLives/pseuds/AlexandriaLives
Summary: The night the Lions left, two Paladins grow closer as they start down the path to new beginnings.Part 1 of the Hypnagogic series:Hypnagogic: of, relating to or occurring in the period of drowsiness immediately preceding sleep.  This is a state that heady lull between wakefulness and sleep when thoughts and images flutter, melt and transform into wild things.
Relationships: Allura & Coran & Hunk & Keith & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt & Shiro, Keith & Pidge | Katie Holt, Keith/Pidge | Katie Holt, Matt Holt & Pidge | Katie Holt
Series: Hypnagogic [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807438
Comments: 29
Kudos: 69





	1. Lions Departure

Pidge felt an intensity build within the paladin bond, but with her own emotions running wild she was unable to determine the source. Taking a deep breath, she calmed her mind and concentrated on the view in front of her. Her mind raced as Green virtual hugged her and took flight without her paladin. She wanted to scream for her lion, all the lions to stay, but she knew it was pointless.

Lance’s marking glowed and he smiled. ‘Allura wants us to know that the lions are needed elsewhere, that we will be okay without them.” He reached up and run his fingers over his mark on his left cheek. “They will be missed as are you Allura.”

After a moment of silence, Keith turned right and gave his attention to Lance. His voice held a sadness that echoed in the open space. “If you need anything, we are here for you.”

Dropping his hand from his face, he smiled. “She would want us to see this as a happy moment. She is beyond our reach, but she will always look out for us.” Glancing back at the Castle, Lance smiled at Coran as the Altean approached.

“Where are the lions going?” Coran panted as he reached the team. “When will they come back?”

Shiro stepped forward and smiled. “They had to go. It was time.” When Coran started to cry, Shiro held up his hands. “Coran, let’s toast the fact we don’t need them. They will be able to help others.” Shiro lead Coran away, but turned back toward the others. “All of you are welcome to board the Atlas tomorrow. We will get you home.”

Hunk’s stomach grumbled causing him to rub the back of his head with his hand. “Guess I’m hungry.”

Lance smiled at his longtime friend. “Let’s get you food. I helped Coran put the food away earlier, I know right where it is.” He faced Keith for a moment and whispered. “Thanks for the offer, but I feel this is a good thing. We can all move on with our lives now.”

Hunk and Lance walked away chatting about what food they would find.

Pidge turned to Keith and found him deep in thought. She pivoted to leave, but heard him step toward her. “I’m fine.”

“It is okay to be sad and miss…”

“Keith, save it. I’m going back to bed.” Pidge stormed out not stopping when he called her name.

By the time she got to her room, she let the tears fall. Her chest tightened as she collapsed to her knees causing her to clutch her shirt. Powerless to stop the onslaught of pain, she quietly sobbed in the dark. Out of nowhere a strong but silent comfort wrapped around her from the Paladin bond. When she focused hard, she found Keith at the other end.

Pulling herself to her feet, Pidge grabbed her picture of her night stand of Matt and her at the Garrison before the Kerberos mission. Going to bed only lasted a few seconds, she sat on the edge of her bed and knew sleep would never come as she focused on Green. The others were happy, why can’t she? 

Concentrating on the Paladin bond, she felt a familiar sadness. Her crying stopped as did her chest pain so she headed toward the door.

Before she knew it, she stood face to face with Keith. Something about his red pajamas and dishevel hair made her hesitate when he opened the door wider and motioned for her to come inside his room. “Did I wake you?”

Keith chuckled as he gently touched her shoulder and pulled her into his room. “I was not asleep. Besides, I may not be the Black Paladin anymore, but I am still your friend.”

Moving deeper into his room she stopped next to his bed triggering Pidge tighten her grip on her picture. Whispering more to herself than him. “You will always be the Black Paladin to me.”

He sat on the edge of his bed and patted the spot to his left. “Well, thank you. That means a lot coming from you.” The confused look caused him to elaborate. “I would have thought you preferred Shiro to me as your leader.” He watched her as she surveyed his room. “Did you want to sit and talk?”

Pidge sat next to him and both sighed. “I thought you had more weapons in here.”

He laughed again as he leaned back on his elbows. “I have what I need.” He pointed at his knife from his night stand. “Why are you carrying Matt’s picture?”

She handed it over without a thought. “Just comparing old me to new me.”

His eyes scanned it and then passed it back. “I like the short hair. It suits you better.”

“Thanks.” She set the picture on the edge of the bed. “Do you think Allura realized you liked her?”

“No. She seemed happy with Lance, so I didn’t want to complicate things. I know we weren’t meant to be. I moved on and am ready to find my place.” Sitting back up, he twisted slightly to see her face better. “Do you want to tell Lance about your feelings?”

“No. It seemed selfish. Plus, I’m not sure that is what I want now. I’m not sure what I want, but I am comfortable being just friends with him.”

“Pidge, I’m sure if the lions need us, they will be back.”

She offered a weak smile as she twisted to face him better. “We say we won, but we didn’t. We lost Allura, our lions, Ryner, many allies and friends. What will become of us if the Paladins no longer have lions? Can we call ourselves Paladins anymore?” 

He reached out and wiped a tear away causing her to shy away. Keith only smiled as he pulled her into a hug and she started to cry again. “We will always have a bond. We will always be Paladins to the depths of our souls no matter if we have lions or not.” He stroked her hair and held her close as she wrapped her arms around him. “Ryner would be proud of what you did for her people. Allura said she could never repay you for giving up your game for her happiness. Lance values your friendship more than you can see. Green would never leave, if you truly needed her.” 

When she finally pulled away, Pidge noticed the tear on his cheek. She reached up and wiped it away with her finger. “Thank you.” Glancing down she noticed the front of his shirt was wet from her tears. “I’m sorry for…”

Her eyes found his as he chuckled. “Pidge, tears are the least of my problem. Typically, my shirts see sweat, possibly blood. My shirt could handle a little water.” He waited a moment while checking their bond. “This is the part where I say something that might upset you.” At her nod yes, he continued. “You can be fearless in a fight, but when it comes to friendship you seem afraid. You need to work on trusting others.”

“I have friends. I trust people.” Defensively she snapped as she shifted away from him.

Keith frowns as she glances toward the door. “Just think about it. The next time someone asks to hang out, you might find it fun to interact with something other than a computer.” 

“What about you?”

He stood up and snatched a pillow from the side of the bed, threw it to the left side of the head board. Then, he walked around the right side of the bed. “You are welcome to stay and talk, but I need to get comfortable.” Keith stretched, yawned and then pulled back the covers. He crawled inside and repositioned the covers on his side. “I am making friends, but it is weird. Some of them want to hang out because I’m a Paladin or cause I’m half Galra. It can be hard to see the difference.”

Pidge moved to lay next to him and snickered. “Your bed is to soft. How do you sleep like this? It is like we are on clouds.” 

He laughed at her as she covered herself with his blanket. “Maybe the guardian spirit of the sky, likes to sleep on clouds.” She yawned as he resisted the urge to repeat her. “The guardian spirit of the forest likes strange places. Anywhere that is uncomfortable, such as the floor, chairs, under desks and my personal favorite, the lunchroom table.”

She snorted as she finally stopped moving. “I don’t try to go to sleep at any of those places. I just have a hard time shutting my brain off to go to sleep. Next thing you know, I have a kink in my neck and my leg is asleep.”

“I sleep better here than on my mom’s ship.” He blushed slightly when he realized he said it aloud. “Please don’t tell her.”

“Your secret is safe.” She was lost in thought for a moment, then sighed. “Is the ship uncomfortable or unfriendly?”

Keith snorted as he sat up on an elbow. “It weird, different than the Castle. Zethrid wants me to know that she is sorry for what happened to you. She wants to send you a gift to apologize for the torture she inflicted on you. Not sure what that would look like anyway. Ezor said to stick with her original apology and let it go.” He chuckled again when Pidge grimaced. “Kolivan and my mom are great, very supportive. Side note, I think they are friends with benefits.”

Pidge started couching uncontrollably for a minute and had to sit up to calm her body down. “Wow. What’s that like?”

“Actually, I would be okay if they were in a relationship.” Waiting for her to get comfortable, he realized she had a blush on her cheeks. “Relationships are different for Galra. It sounds complicated and very frustrating.” Yawning again, he covered his mouth this time. “Acxa asks me questions all the time about Terrain mating rules, like I know. If I didn’t know any better, she either likes Veronica or M…” He froze with his eyes wide as he tried to figure out what to say.

Pidge smiled at him and then smirked. “I don’t think it is Matt, I bet it’s James.” She snickered as Keith moved closer. “I have no proof yet, but I bet Matt and Veronica are together. I saw them kissing once and after that they act really weird around each other in public.”

“Does Lance know?”

“I’m not telling him and don’t you either.” Mortified at the thought of telling Lance about his sister’s interest, Pidge shook her head no. “Is Hunk seeing Shay or Romelle?”

“No clue.” Easing back down to his pillow, Keith shook his head. “What about you, do you think you will love again?”

Smiling and blushing, Pidge stared at the ceiling. “I can see falling in love with someone who loves me back. One day, I would get married, have kids, visit planets and help others. All as long as I get to be me.”

His voice sounded proud and in awe of his friend. “A little genius named Pidge, who’s not afraid to kick butt. A force of Nature.”

“Katie.” Her eyes met his and neither could look away. “My name is really Katie, not Pidge.”

“Yes, I know.” His eyes searched for something, but she couldn’t tell what. “We had just got the Red lion back from the Galra ship. You said Katie Rose left the building. Before that I wondered if you were a girl. However, in that moment, I knew. I figured if you wanted everyone to know you would say something.”

Her blush darkened and she stared at him. “What about you? Do you want to get married someday, have kids?”

“Not sure I would be good at it. For the right person, probably.” 

Without thinking she reached out and touched the start of the scar on his face. “It makes you look dangerous.” She traced the scar until she reached his chin. “Thank you for tonight. I needed this. I didn’t expect to feel this way. Green’s departure will change my life.”

“For you any time.”

She pulled herself out of his bed and shook her head in disbelief. “I’m going back to my room to sleep on my floor. It has to be better than this.” She was rewarded with a chuckle. “Good night Keith.”

“Good night Pidge.”

She nodded at the door and closed his door behind her. Journeying to her room, she passed Coran and Shiro while they discussed old times. 

Then, she spotted Lance and Hunk off in the flowers goofing off.

She continued to her room, shut the door behind her and heaved a sigh. Unlike the last time, she felt no grief just calm. She grabbed a drink of water, chugged it and placed it by her night stand. Overlooking the room, she found it a mess.

Clothes were all over the floor, small gadgets on the desk by her laptop and sketches spilling from the table to the floor. Contemplating going straight to sleep, she opted instead to clean up tonight and sleep in the morning.

In less than twenty minutes, she had packed up the important stuff and organized her projects. Typically, she moved slower in her tasks because she talked to Green along the way. Maybe Keith had a point to include people into her life. Maybe she needed more fun in her life. 

She pulled back her covers and crawled into bed. 

At first, she stared at the ceiling. 

Next, she closed her eyes and willed herself to sleep. 

When that didn’t work, she stared at the ceiling again.

Pidge closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. She wondered how her family would react to her lion leaving. Her parents would be happy she was in less danger, but they knew what Green meant to her. Hopefully, Matt would be on Earth by the time she got back. 

For a moment, Green sat in her hanger on Earth as Pidge worked around her. The two sharing thoughts and feelings as Pidge worked. Then, she saw herself working alone with an empty space where Green once sat.

For an instant, she stood next to a little boy as he glared at a tombstone. Grief flowed all around him and Pidge wished to help him. The wind carried his words away from her as if they were not meant for her. Before she could reach out to comfort him, he disappeared.

Next, she stood in front of a burning building next to a rather tall man with short dark hair, bluish eyes, and a powerful build. He wore a firefighter’s outfit, but he wore something else underneath, sadness. He had a strong resemblance to someone, but she couldn’t place who.

A shiver ran through her as the stranger gazed upon her, she felt nervous, but not afraid. Comfort and protection flowed from him into her and back to him.

As if time stopped, he spoke in a gentle manor. “My son has made me so proud. I wish I had more time with him, but some of us don’t get the luxury of being with those we love. Destiny had other plans for us. He became a great man and I wish for him to see what joy he brings to others.” 

The man shifted closer and lowered himself to her level. “I am sorry for your loss, but it should not define you. We want you to remember us, what we stood for. However, we need you to remember that you did not die. It’s your responsibility to live on for us.” 

He smiled at her as if he knew her biggest secret. “In time, you will recognize everything you need right here and here.” He pointed to her head and her chest. “Please tell him what I said. Thank you, Katie.”

Glancing up at the burning house, Pidge heard someone scream from the second floor. She stepped forward to run in, but a hand closed around her arm and kept her from advancing. The firefighter ran into the building and vanished.

Banging on her door had her jolted out of bed and run to the door. Swinging the door open, she found Lance fully dressed and a grimace plastered on his face. “Still asleep? Figures, we leave in two hours and I got the short straw to help you pack.” Pushing past her, Lance took several steps, then stopped dead.

“Sure, Lance come on in.” Sarcasm dripping from her words as she shut the door and walked back to her night stand. “I packed last night. I need a shower and I will be ready to leave in twenty.”

Rubbing the back of his neck, Lance hesitated to speak. His eyes scanned the room in confusion as he processed the tidy room. “Are we okay?”

“Lance, of course we are. Why wouldn’t we be?” She stated in a matter a fact tone as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

Looking over his shoulder at her, Lance attempted a smile but failed. “Well, you lost Green and she meant everything to you. Between Allura, Ryner and Green, I wanted to check up on you. You would do whatever it took to get your family back. I wanted to check that you were okay.”

Smirking, she moved to her bag and pulled out new clothes. “Lance, I’m fine, we’re fine. Maybe things were rough, but we are friends to the end, so don’t worry about us. I really do feel better.” Her legs carried her to the bathroom, but she paused in the doorway. “I was upset about Green, but after my talk with Keith, I felt better.” She watched him tense at Keith’s name so she rolled her eyes. 

Exhaling loudly, Lance visibly relaxed. “So, you talked to mullet? Did he make you go for a training session?”

She chuckled as she remembered his soft bed. “Lance, please remember, he lost Black just like you lost Red. He didn’t say anything last night, but it’s my impression he always felt disconnected from the rest of us. This has to be stressful for him.” 

At his shrug, she put the nail in the coffin. “Besides, when his hair is in a ponytail, he can be considered sexy.” She heard his gasp as she entered the bathroom and closed the door. 

After a quick shower and change of clothes, she stepped out to an empty room. She grabbed her stuff and left to board the Atlas and head back to Earth.


	2. Keith learns the meaning of leadership

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith sends his space wolf on a mission. Then, he has an unexpected visitor.

Keith slipped down the hallway toward the bridge of Kolivan’s ship unnoticed. Two weeks passed since the lions left and Keith hoped the others would let it blow over quickly. 

However, since the fall of Zarkon, the Blade gossiped more than the mice in the Castle. He hoped Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor picked a different topic than Keith or Earth. However, luck was not on his side.

Part of him knew not to take it personal, but had a lingering feeling (rather remote) that it was due to his dad’s side of the family. They wanted to know more and more about what it was like growing up on Earth and the important rituals that take place. 

Fortunately, or unfortunately, his mom loved answering questions for him. Only sometimes she would say things which seemed wrong. He would let it go because he didn’t want to encourage their questions.

Upon opening the door to the bridge, Kolivan, Acxa and his mom stopped talking mid-sentence. Zethrid and Ezor moved past him to take seats at the table. Acxa joined the table leaving the spot open between Kolivan and Krolia.

As he approached them, he felt a surge of hesitation from far away. Then, the feeling disappeared as fast as it came. He briefly wondered if it was Tuesday or Saturday back on Earth? Then again, did he care? As he left, he reminded them to contact him if needed. Once he arrived back on Kolivan’s ship, Keith threw himself back into work. 

Instinctively, he took the open seat next to his mom. He watched as other soldiers gathered around with anxious expressions.

Once Kolivan sat, the discussions began. Several brought up problems with the food supplies and others wanted land disputes solutions. For an hour, the team discussed how they will get food distributed to the areas with the most need. Then another hour and a half discussing who they will send to settle the fights over land. Assignments were handed to all members except Kolivan and his mom. 

Keith wondered how they would ever get to a better tomorrow by fixing all these little tasks. He wondered if this is the future of the Galra people. 

As the meeting concluded, Krolia gentling touched Keith’s arm causing him to look at her. “A dollar for your thoughts.”

Keith snickered before he answered. “A penny, a penny for your thoughts.” Krolia scrunch her eyebrows in concern causing Keith to exhale loud. “Sorry, I’m just…” He paused realizing his mistake. If he said tired, she would tell him to get sleep. If he was irritable, she would question why. 

Before he could come up with a good excuse a space wolf appeared two feet from him. “Hey boy, how are you?”

The space wolf dropped Keith’s bag at Keith’s feet, then pushed the bag onto Keith’s shoe. Bending down, the space wolf licked the right side of Keith’s face. 

“I wish I knew what you wanted boy.” Keith whispered as he rubbed the wolf’s ear affectionately.

Krolia patted the wolf’s back as she questioned Keith. “When did he start this?”

Keith picked up the bag after the wolf nudged it again. “Since I got back, at least twice a day, he finds my bag no matter where I hide it and brings it to me. He must have missed playing in the fields or having the others spoil him.”

Acxa points to it bag with a confused look. “What is special about that bag? Do you have food in there?”

“It’s nothing special. I used it on my last trip to Altea.” Opening the bag, Keith sets the content on the table. His night shirt and pants, a bottle of Altea lotion made by Lance’s family, a note from Shiro and some cookies from Hunk. “See boy, nothing strange, just stuff from the other Paladins. You can’t have Lance’s lotion, it made you sick last time. Hunk’s cookies are mine.”

The space wolf nudged the bag again, then sat back and howled. 

Zethrid stood up and reached into a side pouch. “What’s this?” Pulling out a flat piece of paper, examined it and then tilted it toward the others. “Ezor, don’t you think she’s cute?” As Ezor moved closer, Zethrid mocked the female. “Keith, I approve. She does appear a little young, but she’s cute. You should have no problem taking her away from that boy. He appears scrawny and you’re a great fighter.”

As he reached out for the picture, but Acxa took it for examination. Her eyes traced the picture as she tried to remember where she would have seen them.

Ezor added her thoughts. “She is cute, but she is rather small and not much of a fighter.”

Keith held out his hand and snapped. “Acxa, give me the picture.” It was a command, but he wasn’t sure she would follow this order.

A few seconds later, Acxa face lit up with recognition. “Wow.” Her eyes lit up with mischief as she calculated her move. “How do you have a picture of Matt Holt?” She purposely handed the picture to Krolia, completely ignoring Keith’s outstretched hand. 

Krolia examined the female in the picture as she shook her head no. “Does the girl belong to him? Keith, I raised you better than that.” She shrugged her shoulders as she held it out to her son. “She is beautiful, small but beautiful. Question is, can she fight?”

As Keith took the picture as Acxa smirked. Her smile widened at Keith’s reaction to the picture. Then in her sweet tone, Acxa spoke to Keith’s mother. “Krolia, I don’t think you understand. That is a picture of Matthew Holt, the son of Samuel and Collen Holt. The girl in the picture is his sister, Katie Holt.” 

Shaking her head, Krolia softly questioned the name. “Why do I feel like I should know those names?”

Before Keith could issue a warning, Acxa went in for the kill. “All of us know her as Pidge Gunderson, the Green Paladin of Voltron. She cut her hair, changed her name, and joined the military. She was underage and risked jail time, but she had to save her family.” 

Three sets of shocked female eyes land on Keith as he inwardly cursed. “It’s not what you think. After the lions left, she came to my room and we talked. She takes that picture with her everywhere. It was the reason she became a Paladin, to find her brother and bring him home.” He placed the picture safety in the side pouch and repacked his bag. “She is probably worried sick about getting it back.”

Krolia stepped closer to her son as she spoke. “She is a great warrior and she is kind to us. We should return the picture to her.”

Focusing on the wolf, Keith padded the wolf’s head with one hand, while holding his bag in the other. Lowering his voice, he spoke softly to his wolf. “Hey buddy, you really like her huh. We know she will be looking for this picture. Would you mind delivering it to her for me?”

Before anyone could object, the space wolf teleported Keith to his bedroom.

A smirk appeared as he set the bag down and surveyed the room. His violet eyes landed on the special metal box on his shelf. “Perfect.” Moving swiftly, he picked on the box and with a complicated series of moves the box opened. Setting the box down, he went over to his drawer and pulled out a black t-shirt. He used the fabric to lace the inside of the jagged box before retrieving the picture and placing it inside. Folding the shirt around the picture, Keith moved over to his desk and takes a sheet of paper.

Pidge,   
Found this and thought you would want it back right away. Sorry if you were worried about finding it, I’m here if you need me.  
Keith

Setting the paper on top of the fabric, he smiled. Then, he ran his finger over the top of the box and closed the lid. With the box in his hand he moved back to his closet and picked up a small leather pouch. Sliding the box inside, he moved back to the space wolf. 

Leaning in front of him, Keith appeared worried. “Are you sure you want to do this?” When the wolf licked his face, Keith slid the pouch around the wolf’s neck. “Once you deliver this to Pidge, come back okay. Don’t get into trouble and make me come get you.” He gave him another hug, stepped back and the wolf vanished.

For an instant he considered messaging her to warn her of the space wolf’s arrival, then he heard a knock at his door.

“Come in.” He said as he put his stuff away.

Krolia cautiously walked into his room seeming to look for something. “Keith, son, I hoped we could talk.” Looking around she noticed someone was absent. “Keith, where is your wolf?”

Keith put the cookies by his nightstand, next to his letter from Shiro and moved the lotion next to his used bottle of lotion. “He left to take Pidge her picture. Why did you need him for something?” Since he was distracted, he missed her frown as he added the dirty clothes to his pile. “He will be back in a few days.”

“You didn’t want to go with him?”

Keith picked up his clothes for bed and set them in his bathroom. “No. He will make sure she get’s it. I need to help all of you.”

“Oh.” Her voice held a sadness left unnoticed by her son. “Well, get some sleep and we can talk later. Good night Keith.”

“Night mom.” He locked the door after she left, but before his shower to prevent someone walking in on him. He moved to the attached bathroom, showered quickly, and returned to his bed. 

He realized the black shirt he sent to Pidge was his night shirt, but it was too late now. She won’t care if she noticed at all so he wore a fresh shirt with his comfortable black shorts. 

Yawning, he climbing onto his side of the bed and wondered what time it was on Earth. Maybe he could get a clock that showed the different time zones for each paladin. He wondered if Pidge and Lance already talked about this, but he didn’t pay attention. It seemed like a conversation they would have when he’s distracted. 

Yawning again, he closed his eyes and willed for sleep. As his mind wondered, he envisioned the wolf popping into her lab and Pidge yelling at him. Matt laughing the whole time as the wolf tried to communicate without words about his cargo. “Holt Siblings.”

Darkness surrounded him on a war ridden planet. A few feet away stood a large statue that activated and stated. “In honor of the 127,098 brave warriors that stood against tyranny, the quest for freedom is won through sacrifice.” In an instant, he understood it was a war memorial. Looking into the distance, he saw all the small pillars erected to represent the fallen soldiers.

Then, Pidge ran by in her Green Paladin armor toward a set of markers. He heard her call out, “No! Please No!” 

Automatically Keith imagined Matt dead and his heart ached. Realizing her words, he set his feet to motion and scrambled after her. ”Pidge, wait! Let me go with you! Pidge!” He called out to her as he added speed to reach her. “You are not alone! I’m here!”

By the time he reached her, Pidge fell to her knees facing one of the head stones. “Matthew Holt, 0010.05.25.0014.04.28”. Tears flowed from her eyes as she cried out, “I’m so sorry, I was too late.” 

As the rain began to fall, Keith crouched beside her. “I’m so sorry. Pidge, let it out. You are not alone. I will…” He closed his eyes and tried to reach out with his Paladin bond, but nothing happened.

She screamed from her loss and Keith knew how she felt. Grief tried but failed to cover him as he remembered what he felt at his father’s funeral. He reached out to hug her when she sat up and mumbled. “Wait. What? Matt’s birthday is wrong. A quantum frequency… It’s a message… the code... What’s the second encryption item? I have the book.”

Keith ran his hand through his bangs as he moved back. “This is the past, isn’t it? We are not really here.” After she rambled a few more moments, she stood. When she ran to Green, he followed her.

He boarded Green and they passed two Galra cruisers while Green was in cloak mode. He watched as Pidge figured out where to go using the rocks, which caused him to smile. Keith watched from a distance as the Holt sibling fought each other and reunited. Then they fought with the bounty hunter making him appreciate the Holt family. 

“See he is fine. Pidge, you got your brother back.”

Everything shifted and the Holt siblings were gone.

A bright light flashed in the sky as a comet flew past a castle and impacted the ground. The ground shook and light flickered in the distance. Keith considered running to the source, but waited instead. 

Five figures emerged from the castle to investigate the light and smoke, but Keith recognized them immediately. The five original Paladins, Zarkon, Alfor, Blatyz, Gyrgan and Trigel stood captivated by the chaos. 

Time stopped around them as Zarkon stood side by side with Keith with the two scrutinizing each other.

“Black Paladin, it is good to see you.” Zarkon laughed at Keith’s expression grew into confusion. “The combined efforts of our teams freed us all from the darkness. I can’t thank you enough.” Zarkon’s expression felt genuinely relaxed and polite. “The former Paladins and I exist on the outside of this realm. However, we agreed to help when we can, so I came here to help guide you on your personal quest.”

“What quest?” Keith questioned, but still skeptical. “Where is here?”

“This was once my home planet, Daibazaal, and the comet in the distance was the source for the lions of Voltron.” Zarkon twisted his body to fully face Keith. “I do not know the nature of your quest, only you can answer that question. I do know a restless soul when I see one. So I wish to help a fellow Paladin in need. First, answer a question, be honest and say the first thing that enters your mind.” When Keith nodded yes, Zarkon nodded back. “What question burns inside of you?” 

“How do you bring them together without going to war?” Keith glanced up and followed the trail of the comet from the beginning to the destination. “Kolivan tried to get the groups to come together, but we still have pockets that won’t listen.”

Zarkon nodded as he stepped forward and pointed at Keith. “Now that is a great question. It is simple, the Galra people need a common leader and a reason to follow.” Rubbing his chin, Zarkon shook his head no while deep in thought. “The Galra are a selective and demanding beings. They will never truly agree to following Kolivan. He is not who all of them can stand behind.”

Growling to himself, Keith threw his arms in the air in fury. “They are so stubborn. This could be the end of the Galra as we know it. What is wrong with them? Their tradition needs to change, or it is the end of all of us.” He paused when he found Zarkon staring at him with a form of amazement on his face. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

Without emotion, Zarkon replied. “Passion, drive, conviction and a strong will. You could lead them. They will follow you. Think of what it takes to lead the Paladins.”

Snapping at him, Keith glared at him in defiance. “The Black Lion is gone.”

“The Black Lion came after I began leading my people, not before. They will follow you. You will know when to push them and when to relax. It is the same as the leading the Paladins. You are the leader they need, not the leader trying to make them listen. Your problem stems from your refusal to see your own value. Besides, I had help, you need your fellow Paladins.”

“I can’t bring them into this.”

Zarkon laughed as he approached his Paladins. “Two out of the three are waiting for you to ask for them to follow for they would drop everything for you. You are important to them.” Exhaling as he viewed his Paladins from a distance, Zarkon lowered his voice. “The third is lost and needs the connection to the rest of you. Losing the Blue Paladin and the lions is more than one can handle on their own.”

Keith nodded in understanding as he pointed. “Alfor must take grief hard because of the loss of his wife.”

“Black is sky, Red is fire, Blue is water and Yellow is ground. However, it is the Green Paladin that interconnects them subconsciously.” The two make eye contact before Zarkon continues. “Green represents the forest, the only form of life.” He paused to let the information sink in. “A single tree begins with their roots in the ground, gathering nourishment. Then, the correct amount of water, heat and air allow the tree to grow and thrive.”

Keith frowned as he turned away. “Why wouldn’t she say something? If she needs help then…”

“She is unaware of the connection, but it is growing.” Smiling as if he knew a secret, Zarkon kept his voice unemotional. “Something else needs to grow stronger before you will need to intervene.”

“I don’t want her to change.” Keith said more to himself.

“Trust me, in time you will.” Laughing hard, Zarkon wiped a tear from his eye. “Keep all of your team close. Start with those nearby and then go get Red. He may not always agree with you, but his job is level you out.”

Then, Zarkon was gone and Keith sat up in his bed back in his room. 

He stood up and walked on autopilot to the cafeteria. Kolivan and his mom sat at one table. Acxa, Ezor and Zethrid sat at another.

Walking into the room in his pajamas and no socks, all eyes fell on him. “We need to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully, I have made you proud.   
> I will do my best to update next Friday.  
> Enjoy your holiday weekend.  
> Glad some of you like my story.
> 
> Again, I enjoy comments, suggestions and critics.


	3. Receiving a gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge continues her path of discovery as her gift arrives from Keith.

A camera flew around him as Ryan walked down the Garrison hallway in his workout clothes. “A little over two weeks ago, the Paladins celebrated Allura day on Altea. However, the celebration ended with the Lions of Voltron leaving. Therefore, I have authorization to document this historic time.” As he neared Pidge, he stopped short to prevent running into a person in a lab coat.

Pidge looked up from her tablet as Ryan came into view. “Sorry Ryan, I didn’t see you.” She studied him as he reached out and shut off his camera. “Going for a workout at this hour? Shouldn’t you be sleeping?”

Before he could answer, Nadia ran up Ryan while ignoring Pidge. “Thought we were filming later today? You left without me. What were you thinking?” 

“What are you filming?” Innocently Pidge questioned, but calculated the answered when the two tensed. “Sorry I don’t want to be interviewed, it’s nothing personal.” She shook her head, but grinned. “I support your efforts, I’m just not ready to talk openly about it.” She shrugged, as she tried but failed to pass them. 

Nadia poured on the sass as she put her hand on her hip. “Well, you could help us convince one of your pals to interview with us. It is for documentation after all.” She dropped the act when Pidge’s face changed. “Hey, I was joking.”

After an awkward moment, Pidge lowered her voice. “Coran, Shiro, Lance, Hunk, Keith and last would be me. Focus on the elements of each.” When they appeared confused, she elaborated. “Black is the Guardian Spirit of the Sky. Black is a gentle breeze or hurricane winds. It is all about perspective. Coran can give you details of each lion and the nature of their paladins.”

Ryan reached out to put his hand on her shoulder causing her to step back. He shrugged it off figuring she meant no disrespect. “Video business aside, later today we need to go into town. You are welcome to join.”

She thought of Keith reminder her to make friends, so she smiled. “I would like to, but I must finish this project. How about tomorrow or the day after?”

“We could pick up dinner and bring it back. Has to be better than cafeteria food.” Nadia offered with a smile.

Weighing her options, Pidge nodded in agreement. “I like Italian or we could get…”

Nadia and Ryan nodded, then passed her continuing Ryan’s path from before. Nadia called back as confirmation. “We’ll come get you about 1800 when we get back.” Then they disappeared around the corner without waiting for a response.

She walked to her lab and sat at her main workstation. Checking over her notes, she jumped right back into work. 

“Katie, there you are.” Matt announced loudly as he entered causing her to pause her work. 

Rolling her eyes, she faced her brother. “Why, hello Matt. How are you? How long are you here for this time?”

Throwing his hands around dramatically, Matt continued his rant. “Since that night, your lab and bedroom are spotless. No wrappers or clothes all over the floor. Your projects are labeled and put away.” He marched over to where she worked and sat on the edge of the desk. Matt scanned her face, frowned and then lowered his voice. “Are you okay?”

Exhaling softly, Pidge pulled off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Yes, I’m fine. I keep my room clean because I kept tripping over stuff in the middle of the night.” Placing her glasses on her face, she glanced at her brother. “I even made dinner plans with Nadia and Ryan.” She told herself it wasn’t a complete lie as she focused on her computer.

Shaking his head in disbelief, Matt studied the content of the room. “I know what Green meant to you and now she is gone. I want to be there for you. It is my job to…”

Panic set in when she followed his eyes to the hand drawn sketch of the firefighter. It felt like slow motion as the both reached for the paper, only she grabbed it first. Holding it to her chest, she stared at him. “I love you and you are my brother. This is private and I would like to keep it that way.”

“I won’t tell anyone.” Their eyes clashed in a war of wills and in a flash Matt snatched it from her. “If, you tell me what is going on in your head. I won’t judge. I promise.” He reviewed the picture, then handed it back. “We used to be close.”

Pidge slid the paper inside her pocket, then sighed in defeat. “The firefighter wanted me to deliver a message to his son, but I do not know his name. He died in a fire and I don’t know any more information.”

“When did he die? Maybe we can find information on the fire.” He rubbed his chin as he paced in front of her. When he studied her face, his scrunched in confusion. “How did you meet him?”

Before she could calculate the best response, Nadia walked in smiling. “Hi Matt. Pidge, you should have called me, we could have picked up food for Matt.” Watching their interaction and Pidge tense, Nadia made a dramatic sigh. “Oh wait, my number changed. I’ll update my new number just hand me your phone.” Pidge smiled as Nadia took the weird device and started putting in information. “Oh yeah, Ryan has our food in the cafeteria.”

Risking a glance at her brother, she knew from the look on his face she fooled him with Nadia, but not with the picture. Nadia handed back her device and Pidge read a message for her on the screen. ‘Need a distraction tonight? I am always available.’ Clearing the message, Pidge smirked at Nadia. “We should go. Matt, you are welcome to join us.” She moved toward the door and the other two followed.

Matt and Nadia chatted a bit as they headed to the café, but Pidge stayed quiet. Arriving in the packed café, Ryan motioned the three of them over. 

Veronica, James, and Ina sat on one side of the table while Ryan sat on the other. Upon seeing Matt, James stood and moved to sit on Ryan’s side making space next to Veronica. 

Nadia sat with a space between her and Ryan causing a brief shocked look from Veronica. Nadia only smiled and cheerfully patted the open seat. “Pidge, sit here. Matt, you should sit next to Ina.” Veronica and Matt tensed, but Nadia ignored them. “Ryan, do you think we can convince Matt to let us interview him. Pidge did say we needed to interview different people close to the Paladins.”

Both Holt siblings took their seats as James agreed to the great idea. “What do you say Matt, can they interview you later?” Mischief danced in his eyes as he turned on someone else. “Oh, you know what would be a great idea. You two should interview Veronica and Matt together.” At James’ words, Veronica and Matt tensed while sending murderous glares. 

Pidge started eating as she mumbled. “As long as I don’t have to see it.” A gasp caused Pidge to focus across the table at Veronica. Realization that she spoke too loud hit, Pidge pointed her fork at the couple. “When everyone else finds out, I know nothing.” She continued eating as her brother stared and Veronica acted as if denial was the best choice. “I’m guessing you didn’t tell anyone in either family. You should be honest. I don’t think anyone will care and if they do, that’s their problem. Why hide it?” She continued eating while the conversation resumed at the table. 

Veronica stayed quiet as James talked to Matt about the a Galra planet the rebel alliance delivered food to yesterday. Nadia and Ryan discussed their video project and their schedule for visiting Coran. James talked to Ina as she stared at her food. 

As Pidge finished eating, the other end of the cafeteria erupted in commotion. Seconds later the middle of the room had people yelling. Then, out of nowhere a certain space wolf teleported to the table. He nudged Nadia out of the way and licked Pidge on the cheek.

“Kosmo!” She screamed as she jumped to her feet and spun around to find his owner. “Keith, what are you teaching him?” Skimming the room, she turned back to the space wolf. “Kosmo, where’s Keith? Is he okay?”

In an instant, Pidge found herself in her lab with a very large wolf licking her face. “Keith isn’t in here Kosmo. Tho, I doubt you would be this calm if Keith was in danger.” Upon closer inspection of her companion, Pidge found something attached to his neck. “It appears your delivering a package.”

Leaning forward, Pidge removed the bag from his neck. “Thanks, boy.” Pidge countered as she inspected the wrapping. “Guess he wanted me to see this in private, or do you not like crowds.” Since Pidge focused on unwrapping the gift, she fell before she realized Kosmo teleported them.

“A little warning next time.” Back in her room, she got off the floor and sat on her bed. Tentatively, she examined the strange metal box on the floor. Picking it up, the surface felt like polished wood, but appeared metallic in nature. Each corner beveled with a nice smooth finish and tiny inscriptions under the surface. 

Speaking more to herself, Pidge flipped the box over. “Wait? Have I seen this before?” Her mind went back to the cargo the Black lion carried from the Castle to Earth. “This is a special Galra puzzle box. Coran told Keith to keep it. We couldn’t find out much from the Altean records. But you can send messages back and forth.”

Her fingers slid over the surface as if she was at her keyboard as she hunted for the correct code. “Keith must have had a hard time getting into this, so he sent it to me. Not to worry, I can solve it.”

Kosmo lounged comfortably by the door without complaint as his eyes tracked her progress. After two hours of trying different combinations, Kosmo’s stomach growled in hunger. 

She smiled at him as she shifted the last piece into place and set it next to her on the bed. Focused on Kosmo, she missed the slight glow of wording appeared on the surface of the box. Instead, she opened a drawer of her nightstand and pulled out a bag of dried meat. 

In a soothing tone, Pidge opened the bag and tossed a large strip to Kosmo. Once he ate the first piece, she rewarded him with the rest. “Mean Keith sending you here without a snack. Doesn’t he know how hard it is traveling here.” She rubbed his neck and feed him snacks until he licked her face. “Would you explore tomorrow? I could take a little break and take a trip out to Keith’s old cabin. Would you like that?” 

When he nudged her back to the bed, she complied. The box fell onto the floor as the words faded but were still present. Yawning, she covered her mouth with her hand as her eyes flutter closed. They popped open as she reached down on picked up the box and set it on the nightstand. Her eyes fluttered closed again as she changed into her pajamas.

Curling in her blanket, she felt Kosmo shift close enough for her to pet him as she fell asleep. She mumbled to him. “I guess I was tired and didn’t realize it.”

Subconsciously, her mind focused on the box and finding the meaning. As she got near what information she wanted, her mind slipped away to something else.

Then, she found herself in the Atlas conference room with several known Galra leaders, like Kolivan, Krolia and others whose names which were not clear. She stood at the head of the table by the screen, while the other sat to one side of the table.

Then, the familiar voice of James Griffin came over the intercom, his words came out in a hurry. “Paladins, report to the main conference room. Paladins, report to the main conference room please.” After a moment of silence, James spoke again. “MFE pilots and bridge support staff report to the main conference room immediately.”

In minutes, several support staff, Garrison officials and MFE pilots entered and took seats on the side opposite to them. 

Acxa swiftly entered and made a direct path to her. “We can help you, but you have to trust us.” Acxa blocks Pidge’s view of the door. “He thinks that you are not a willing participant. It will be up to you to convince him otherwise.” For a second, she leaned and whispered. “He loves you as much as you love him, but your both to stubborn to admit it.” One glance to the door and Acxa stepped out the way.

Next, Pidge found herself in the bedroom on a Galra ship. Her stomach flipped as she glances down and discovered her normal clothes replace by a black t-shirt and black shorts. Grabbing the door handle she found it locked. Sighing, she walked over to the bathroom door on the side wall and reached for the handle. This time the door swung open and Pidge reached out to stabilize herself from the fall. Keith caught her by the arm and pulled her close for balance. 

His hair damp from the shower ran a single bead of water down his bare chest. His body exposed to her except for the red towel on his hips. 

“Nice nap?” The two stared at each other as Keith began to smirk and Pidge’s cheeks darkened. His eyes scanned her down and back up causing her to swallow hard. His warm skin made her body shiver with excitement. He rotated her to push her back against the nearest wall and finished closing the gap between them. “It’s really good to see you.” Her hands shifted from his arms to his chest giving him the distraction he needed to close in on her neck. “We can talk later.”

“Should we be…” Pidge pondered as he breathed on her neck. “I have work and you need to…”

Running his nose up her neck, he stopped by her ear, and then whispered. “I kept dreaming about you and I want this to be real, not a dream. I’m not holding back anymore, so prepare yourself Katie.” His left hand pinned her hip to the wall, while his right moved her arm away from his chest to create a bigger opening.

Her body shuddered as he nipped her ear, and then moved to the sensitive skin on her neck again. He placed a few kisses on her, so she turned to her his attention back on reality. She had prepared what she wanted to say to him. “Keith…” she whispered before he crushed her lips with his. 

When she reached around his neck, he took the opening to depend the kiss. Keith raised her hips slightly to gain better hold of her and made it easier to wrap her legs around him. Breaking the kiss, his smug tone filled her ears. “Katie, why did we wait so long?”

He kissed her again, but he changed to gentle and shy. They were moving away from the wall and next the soft bed greeted her back. He broke the kiss and stared at her for a moment.

Sliding her hand to his face, she traced the scar on his right cheek. “Pride.” She earned a confused look forcing her to continue. “What? We let our pride stand in the way of communicating what we wanted.” Searching his eyes, she found the same emotions running around inside her. “Not anymore.” She mumbled as she pulled him into a scorching kiss. Pulling his body closer, a new sensation passed through her.

Shifting on the bed slightly, he ran his hand from her hip up and under her shirt towards…

A loud alarm woke her from sleep jarring her to a seated position. The space wolf stared at her with a sadness in his eyes triggering her to speak. “Kosmo, if you want, I can meet up with you later. I bet the alarm is really loud for you. I’ll call you if I need you.” He disappeared is a flash before the alarm cut off. 

Motivated to get dressed quickly, she threw on her normal clothes. Glancing at the puzzle box, she slid it into her computer bag and then raced to the main conference room. Flying down the hall, she shuffled past several cadets with ease. Her mind wondered to Acxa and the cryptic conversation and what are her conviction on her feelings. Can Keith read it from their bond, is he trying?

As she turned the last corner to the conference room, several employees stopped talking. She ignored them and proceeded into the room. No one noticed her entrance due to the yelling going on between Iverson and a coalition representative. 

“Commander Iverson, we do not know why, but the Galra temple activated last night.” He scanned the others, but it is clear he would protect his region. “It is near an occupied planet that wishes to be left alone. They do not want any Galra near their civilization. They have suffered enough!”

Commander Holt walked between Iverson and the screen. “May we please send the Atlas? Shiro will honor all of your requests, we just wants to help.”

The coalition man relaxed slightly, but shook his head no. “The people who live in the Dalterion Belt will not want them either and…”

Stepping forward, Pidge had to interrupt. “Excuse me. My name is Pidge and I am the Green Paladin of Voltron. I am sure Trigel’s people would allow me to investigate. If I bring a small group with me, can I investigate?”

He rubbed his chin as he considered the offer. “Who is Trigel?”

“She was the ruler of the Dalterion Belt and the original Green Paladin. Tell them, that I will personally investigate and report back to them what I find. Eventually, we will provide information to the Galra, but we need to determine what happened.” Turning back to the two commanders, she nodded. “Can I please borrow the MFE pilots, Keith always said they are the best? And I need Veronica too.”

She moved over to James and whispered. “Are you okay with going?” He nodded yes, opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off. “How long until we can leave?”

“Two hours tops.”

Nodding in agreement, she glanced at his team, then back at him. “Kosmo comes, that’s not a problem is it?”

“Nope.”

Turning back to the screen, she stared at the coalition man until he was able to get an answer on her original request. 

His shaky voice filled the room. “The people of the Dalterion Belt would be honored if the Green Paladin would come. They we provide lodging, food and any supplies she desires.”

“Thank you, sir. Please give them our thanks and do our best to honor their requests.” Pidge smiled at coalition man when he nodded in agreement. She focused back to James and his team. “We will leave in two hours.” She turned and left the room. 

First, she grabbed stuff from her room. Then, she walked straight into the lab. Pidge open drawers and removed several cards with different hand drawn pictures. “Kosmo.” As she grabbed her last card, the cosmic wolf appeared next to her. “You are free to go back to Keith or you can join us on our trip. All you have to do is meet us in the hanger in an hour. The choice is yours.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know if you like how I wrote the beginning of things between Keith and Pidge.


	4. Letter to Keith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith learns more about being Galra.

Keith,  
Hey, I know we haven’t talked in a while and I know you are busy, but I wanted you to know that Kosmo made it safe and sound. The gift is lovely, it’s the puzzle box. Currently, we are headed to the Dalterion Belt to help a special little green planet with a nearby Galra outpost. 

I wanted a chance to say thank you for what happened on Altea. Between losing Ryner, leaving Allura behind and seeing Lance fall apart, it was hard. However, watching my lion leave was the last straw and I lost it. I took it out on you and for that I am sorry. I know you said that is what you are for, but I never treated Shiro that way. I bet you didn’t count on having to pick up the pieces when you became the Black Paladin, because I’m not sure all of this was in the job description. However, Black picked wisely when he chose you.

You are right about me, about why I held back, I was scared. I have never had many friends and I am not very trusting. Just know that your friendship is important to me and I am glad we met. I really am trying to let others in. I even invited James and his team to go with me on my mission.

Out of curiosity, how are you sleeping? You seemed tired on Altea and I know having weird dreams can wreck your sleep pattern. If you need a break, you could come for a visit and I could show you my plans for my new project. Actually, I wanted to get your opinion on a side project, but that can wait. Well, let me know if you want to help on my new project. Or if you want to go cause problems in the space mall. I am up for fun.

Let me know what you decide and try not to take everything too seriously. We are still too young to not have fun.  
Katie

\------------------------------------

Keith read the message a few times and when he looked up, he found Acxa staring at him. “What?” He turned to Kolivan and his mom to find them staring as well. “What?” His mind raced as he scanned the room and found everyone watching him. Everyone appeared shock except his mom, who wore small smile. “Why are all of you staring?”

Placing a hand on her son’s shoulder, Krolia kept her voice soft and friendly. “Keith, we wouldn’t stare if you smiled more often. You seemed lost and tired when you entered. Then after one note, you smiled and even chuckled a little.” She ignored her son’s blush and continued. “I like seeing you happy. Did the note bring good news? Who wrote it?”

Her nice tone did not fool him, Keith knew his mother had guessed the author. Glancing at Kolivan and Axca, they knew as well. “You know who wrote it. She is just checking up on me, that’s all. Please don’t read into her message. She was happy to get her picture back.”

Zethrid handed a small coin over to Ezor in a huff as Axca held out her hand to Kolivan. Everyone else went back to work.

The scene caused Keith to roll his eyes and Krolia to clear her throat. “She is your friend and always welcome to visit.” As his shoulders tensed, she squeezed gently and slid her hand down to grip his arm instead. Gently she tugged him to a console that displayed a map. “What did Katie have to say?”

“She is on her way to the Dalterion Belt to check out a Galra outpost.” Curiously, Kolivan nod to Axca and Keith figured it was another way for them to make fun of him. “She did question my sleep, more specifically my dreams.” It didn’t register to him that the image of their ship on the map altered course. “It must be both ways… she sees it too.”

Krolia lowered her voice for only Keith, Kolivan and Axca to hear. “Keith, what about dreams? Are you sharing dreams with her?” She let go of his arm and smiled. “Please tell me what’s going on.”

Kolivan interrupted in a calm quiet tone. “Krolia, please give Keith a chance to shower and eat.” Placing a hand on Keith’s shoulder, he lowered his voice more. “We would like to chat with you in your room before you sleep tonight.”

Keith nodded in agreement, then headed off for a shower, food and nap. Shifting to autopilot and using muscle memory to complete his tasks allowed his mind time to wonder if he should go for a visit. He listed all the pros and cons by the time he finished his shower and dinner. As he approached his room, Keith found Kolivan, Krolia, Axca, Zethrid and Ezor waiting. 

Without speaking the visitors followed him into his room. Ezor closed the door behind her and gave a weak smile. Kolivan stood by the book shelf, Krolia sat on the edge of Keith’s bed. Axca sat a Keith’s desk across from the bed, while the other two stayed close to the door. Everyone waited for Keith to put his stuff away and take a seat on his bed. 

Axca cleared her throat to gain Keith’s attention. “Keith, we are friends, right? Fellow soldiers at the very least.” At his nod, she continued. “We know you don’t want to talk about the other paladins, especially Pidge, but we need you to understand what is happening.”

Running his hand threw his hair he glanced at his knife on the table by his bed. “We have discussed this at length. Nothing is going on.”

Zethrid laughed and quickly stopped when Ezor elbowed her. She snapped at Ezor. “What? He doesn’t believe us.” 

Ezor shook her head in disagreement as she placed herself between Keith and the others. “Ignore them.” Her eyes softened as she fidgeted with her hands. “We can tell you are not sleeping well. Are you still having strange dreams?” She took it as a yes when he looked away. “Krolia told us so we could help. We have all lost so much, you know more than anyone you need to talk.”

Axca stood and moved toward the door. “If you don’t believe us, talk to the Lance, as the Red Paladin he is the second in command. Lance told Veronica he would do it all again if it meant he was happy for a short period in time with Allura. I bet he would tell you to talk to her.” She reached for the door and snapped at the others. “Let’s leave him to his dreams.”

Keith exhaled loudly as Axca turned to leave. “Why do any of you care?”

Zethrid voice cracked as she spoke. “She forgave me for what happened. I didn’t deserve her forgiveness.” Her eyes met Keith’s causing her calm down slightly. “She is a force of nature and I owe her a debt.” His relaxed posture indicated his comfort with the conversation, Zethrid pushed on. “She is valuable to you. She talked to you and that knowledge weighs on you. It changed how you see her that even you might not see. She is safe with us.”

Keith shifts on his bed before reluctantly admitting a truth. “The first time Sendak attacked the castle, she had packed her stuff to leave and was leaving to search for her family. She stayed because she realized how important it was to be part of a team.” He laid back on the bed to force himself to relax. “The night the lions left was difficult. Shiro and Coran sat up talking. Lance and Hunk went for a walk. However, she left to go to her room. After a short time, she knocked on my door. We spent the rest of the time talking. Of all her choices, she came to me for comfort. “

Krolia eyes traveled to him and she lowered her voice. “We want to help you. We agree our questions are uncomfortable, but necessary.” She paused to give him time to process her words. “Keith, do you know the mating rituals of the Galra?”

Keith exhaled, then sat up and faced them, then smiled before running his hand over his face. “Please do not have this conversation with the other paladins. I am afraid of how each would take this conversation.” Sitting up a little straighter as his tone evened out. “For a race that is typically aggressive, it sounds really tame. If a Galra wants a lasting relationship, they must share an intimate moment with their intended. They must be stimulated physically and emotionally during their courting; which humans would call this dating. Once the agreement has been fulfilled and both are satisfied, they can move to the bonding requirements. One offers the other a gift that shows their devotion and trust. If accepted, they are engaged. They must show their affection for each other in a way that demonstrates to others that they are together. A bonding ceremony is performed and the couple is married.”

Ezor smiled and moved closer to Zethrid. “Keith, from what we have observed, you are dating Pidge.”

A laugh escaped his lips from the obvious joke, but when no one laughed Keith stilled. “I’m not dating Pidge.”

“Ezor did not mean to upset you, Keith.” Axca fidgeted with her hands as she addressed Keith. “She changed when we boarded the Atlas, hurt and guarded. During our last few visits to Earth, she was different. Between the letter and your visible reactions, your bond is more than friendship. Some will write it off as part of your Paladin bond, but it is obvious to the Galra who knows you that this is different.”

“She is just a friend.”

“Son, at least everyone on the ship and possibly Lance agree you are more than friends.” When Keith’s head snapped to his mom, she gave a small smile. “Actually, he put the idea in my head on the Atlas, something about your hair and her cleaning her room.” Krolia scooted closer and offered a smile. “What weird dreams are you having?”

Kolivan carefully picked up a book from Keith’s shelf and examined the spine. His tone soft, but his words chosen with care. “If they were only dreams, we are sorry for intruding. If it is more than a typical dream, then we can help you on your quest to self-discovery.”

Keith’s heart began to race at the word quest causing him to stand up and pace. “He asked about my quest.” He said more to himself, but once he realized it was aloud, he found them staring.

Calming himself, Keith sat on his bed and placed his hands in his lap. “The dreams started around the night the lions left. Some are so vivid that when I wake, they stay with me. Some are memories of my past and others are glimpses of things I wanted to know.” Inspecting their faces, Keith speculated he struck a nerve. “The night Kosmo left, I dreamed of Daibazaal when the comet crashed and I talked with Zarkon. He said that he came to help guide me on my personal quest.” Rubbing his neck, Keith took a deep breath. “We talked about the how to bring the Galra together under one leader.”

Setting the book back on the shelf, Kolivan chuckled lightly. “You said me, but Zarkon told you the flaws with that decisions. Instead, he gave you better direction.” Intentionally pausing as he moved over to sit next to Keith. “What is holding you back from leading the Galra?”

“I am not true Galra.”

Kolivan shook his head no. “You have Galra blood, you passed the trials and you lead the Paladins. I agree with Zarkon, the Galra will follow you. So, what about the dreams bothers you so much? Do you see your fellow Paladins?”

“One of the dreams showed me something I didn’t want to see.” Keith took a calming breath and surveyed the room. Everyone wore faces of concern causing Keith to relax slightly. “I was running through a dense forest with my companion right behind me. They tracked us from the temple to the forest to apprehended us. When a wave of pain originated from my side, I looked down. My side was covered in blood and it wasn’t stopping. Wounded and tired, I stopped to calculate the distance from where we were to safety, and then calculated the distance from our pursuers. Both of us do not have time to make it to safety. I reached for my blade and stare at the emblem. It is the symbol of the Galra who came before me and it should be passed to the someone who will value its importance as I do. I hold out the knife to her and tell her to run for safety. She says…” His heart raced as he pictured Pidge yelling at him. “It is not what a Paladin would do, we stick together.” He pinched the bridge of his nose to clear his mind.

Krolia patted her son’s leg. “Your bond is strong.”

“The Paladin bond is very strong.” Several of them chuckle at him causing Keith to frown.

Acxa rolls her eyes while standing up. Her voice sounded rougher than intended. “Keith, this is not the Paladin bond talking to you. What you described is how we would describe part of the Galra bonding.”

Ezor breaks in with a question. “How did you send her picture back?”

Glancing at Zethrid and Ezor, Keith told the truth. “I used that Galra puzzle box thing we found in the Castle of Lions. I opened it and put the picture inside.”

Krolia jumped up and ran over to the spot he used to store the device. “Keith, did you put anything personal inside?”

Offhandedly, he answered. “Yes, I wrote her a note and wrapped it in a shirt to keep it from sliding around in the box.” His mother’s spin and her mouth slightly opened surprised him. They were all acting nuts. “What? I wasn’t using it and she knew it was a puzzle box. She will figure out how to open it. What did I do now?”

Krolia recovered first. “Keith, by sending the box, you asked her to marry you.” She waited for it to sink in and when his eyes widened, she sighed. “If she opens it, then she accepts your engagement gift and within Galra law the two of you must be married.” Krolia nodded to the door and they all make their exit. 

Turning to Acxa, Kolivan mumbled something about a course correction to Earth.

Krolia added, “Keith, this is a good thing and you deserve to be happy.”

Left alone in his room, Keith turned off his light and positioned himself on his bed. In the dark he noticed a blinking light coming from his table. 

He picked up the small device and ran his finger over surface activating the screen. 

Lance’s beauty cream face appeared from a dark lit room as he yawned. “Do you have any idea what time it is? It is past midnight here.”

“Lance, you called me.”

Yawning again, Lance set down his device and wiped off his face stuff. “I could tell from the paladin bond that you needed to talk. Are you working yourself to hard? Are you going on a dangerous mission? What’s going on?”

Exhaling loudly, Keith rubbed his hand over his face and spoke more to himself than Lance. “Why does everyone keep pushing?” Lance snickered making Keith exhale again. “I’m fine Lance.”

As he finished his face mask removal, Lance sighed. “You are as bad as Pidge. Fine, you win. Good night Keith.”

“Lance, are you really okay with Allura being gone?” Lance’s eyes scanned the room as if piecing together a puzzle, which caused Keith to smile. “Are you okay? Did I break you?”

Focused and driven Lance’s eyes stilled on Keith’s image. “It is weird, I never thought of you would be the one to call.” Lance continued undeterred as Keith sat up in bed. “I’m sorry I was jerk to you in the beginning, but I never thought what I said mattered to you.”

“Forget I said anything.” Keith knew the moment Lance latched onto a profound thought and he felt the pit of his stomach drop while his face got hotter.

Lance noticed the blush on Keith’s cheeks and raised an eyebrow. “Are you blushing?”

Barely above a whisper, Keith replied honestly. “I think I’m engaged.” 

“What?” Lance screamed. “You’re engaged?”

Keith rubbed his hand over his face showing his frustration, but his voice sounded commanding. “Lower you voice and don’t laugh.” Shifting back on his bed, Keith stared at Lance’s image. Sighing in frustration, Keith rubbed his hand over his face. “Well, my mom said you gave her the idea that the two of us were building toward a relationship. Then, Kolivan, Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor jumped on to that thought. All of them quizzed me about our relationship and the way I described it, I proposed to her and they are all excited by this turn of events.”

“I thought you liked her, but I didn’t know you two moved so fast. But then again it is in both of your nature to move quickly for something you want. At least she said yes, right? That says a lot.” Both eyebrows went up when Keith didn’t answer. “She did say yes? Right?” When Keith shrugged his shoulders in a confused noncommittal way, Lance merely whistled. “Okay. Let me get this straight, you accidently proposed to an attractive female, who is attracted to you back and…”

Keith’s face scrunched in confusion as he interrupted. “How do you know she is attracted to me? I mean my scar does make me look dangerous, but she said it in a curious study you in a lab sort of way.” 

Lance chuckled at the conversation he had with Pidge. “I called you mullet and she said it was sexy. She said something about a ponytail too. Dangerous, huh. Interesting.” Lance wiggled his eyebrows as he spoke. “Study you in a lab, yeah, I’m sure she wanted to study something.”

“Good night Lance.” Keith said frustratedly. 

Lance’s eyes narrowed on Keith. “Finally figuring out the small details. I’m here buddy. Would you prefer I can meet you at the Garrison tomorrow afternoon where we can talk face to face?” Lance paused as watched as a small amount of panic set on Keith’s features. Keith appeared confused making Lance focus. 

Keith spoke more to himself than Lance. “I’m supposed to wait to Red, but what does he know.” Turning back to Lance, Keith questioned his friend even if he had lost his mind. “Lance, we should meet, but how would you like to take a little trip?” 

“I can be ready to leave here by morning, where we going?” When Keith took a while to answer Lance laughed. “I can help, Red is meant to be the right hand remember?” 

Keith yawned before shaking his head no. “I can make it to the beach near you in 10 hours. Pack for a long trip. We will talk more once we are on the move. Night Lance.”

“Avoiding the Garrison?”

Rolling his eyes, then Keith shook his head no. “I am not avoiding anything. Besides, I got a message from Pidge a few hours ago that she left on a mission. She will be out of reach for a while.”

Lance nodded in acknowledgement. “On the beach it is. Night Keith.” 

After Lance hung up, Keith stared at the ceiling. He remembered Zarkon’s words of keeping the Paladins close, but picking Red last, but he needed advice from someone who knows them both. He didn’t know how she would take the news when she found out, but he was sure to find out. What if she did call him dangerous and then said he had sexy hair. Did that mean she like him enough to get engaged? Is that what he wanted? Would they be ready for that big of a step?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone still enjoys the story.  
> Don't worry more is coming.


	5. Galra Outpost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How will Keith explain to Pidge this new turn of events?  
> Will he be the one to tell her, or will someone else reveal the secrets?

Pidge sat in the navigator’s seat while James prepped the ship for departure. Their planned arrival hours ago, but after two detours, the team picked up an extra passenger and they had to stop by Altea to help Coran. Still on edge from the latest dream, Pidge blocked out Ryan, Nadia and Veronica as they rambled about Romelle joining them.

Kosmo popped into the small space and dropped small white flowers on Pidge’s keyboard and popped back out.

Pidge picked them up and examined them, then tentative sniffed the sweet smell of cookies. She chuckled to herself, but noticed the room fell quiet. “They smell like cookies. Flowers that smell like peanut butter cookies, it is so crazy. “

James reached for one and smelled it. “Strange, they do.” His eyes moved back to Ryan as he went back to work mode. “Ryan, we are about to take off, let the others know and they are all secure. Nadia, make sure our crates didn’t shift.” After the two left, James remained quiet until Ryan alerted that they were good to take off. He initiated takeoff and cleared his throat. “Sorry, we had a few detours, we should be there in less than 8 hours. You can go rest if you want.”

“No. I wanted to watch the readings and make sure nothing strange happens.” She kept to herself that she wanted to ensure their arrival and prevent any more setbacks.

Ryan called James on the communicator and James started the ship. The three of them were quiet for a while James piloted the craft into space. Pidge ignored their banter as James and Veronica started talking.

Veronica seemed upset with Lance, but she talked in code. That is until veronica said something that Pidge could not ignore. “I am still a little shocked about Lance leaving the farm. But after hearing about Keith’s predicament, I can see why.”

Pidge focused on Veronica’s conversation. “Why did Lance leave the farm?”

Veronica rolled her eyes and spoke with a protectiveness of a big sister. “Luis and Marco overheard them talking late last night. Keith called and asked him to help him with a problem. You know Lance would do anything for the Paladins. So, they talked about Keith needing Lance to help him due to situation. It sounds like Keith didn’t know the Galra customs but started a chain reaction leading to him proposing to some girl.”

Mumbling to herself, Pidge spoke at the same time as James. Pidge questioned, “engaged?” 

James questioned Veronica on the identity of the other half of the couple. “Who do you think it is?” 

Veronica shrugged as she considered the options. “Marco said that neither of them stated a name or indicated when and how it happened. I would ask Acxa, but she is out of reach right now. According to Acxa, over the last year he keeps to himself. Well, outside of missions, he traveled to Earth or to visit the Atlas.”

James shook his head in disbelief. “Well, he must have had contact with someone enough to get engaged.” He shifted the controls and his tone changed to a mix of confusion and hope. “Acxa did say their customs are different, but no too far off from our own. More like they have a ridged set of rules that must be followed...” He trailed off, but Pidge didn’t care. 

An image of Keith’s talk about relationships in his room the night the lions left. She felt sadness pass over her from somewhere she wanted to ignore. 

Next, images of Keith pressing her against the wall caused her to blush. Kosmo appeared, but her focus missed it. Before she realized what happened, Kosmo teleported them to a small room where she stored her stuff. She fell back hard against the cold floor causing her to lose her grip letting him teleported away. 

“Thanks Kosmo.” She mumbled, but she had no bite to her words. “Next time, aim for somewhere soft.”

Sitting on the floor, hoping tears wouldn’t fall, Pidge noticed her flowers still in her hand. Her bag sat next to her, so she set her flowers down. She opened it and pulled out the metal puzzle box. Her tentative smile widened as her fingers ran over the surface and shifted the panels into place. Upon opening, it revealed the picture inside, along with a black t-shirt and a note. 

Smiling to herself, she slipped the shirt and note in her bag. As she held the picture, Pidge ran her finger over the photo. Sliding the picture back into the box, she focused on the pattern inside. Calculating the box was the safest place to store her drawings from prying eyes, like her brothers, she pulled out several small card with drawing on them. 

Carefully, she sorted the picture and then looked at each one before placing them into the box. First, Pidge stood at a table in Green’s hangar at the Garrison alone. Next, a dark headed boy surrounded by darkness at a cemetery. Then, a firefighter running into a burning building. An abstract shape of a Quintessence nexus with a strange planetary formation in the background. “How are you connected to the Lions?” Purple glowing gens scattered on the ground similar to the trans-reality comet. “What are you trying to tell me?” One Red and one green Space Caterpillars floating in an asteroid belt of yellow rocks. “I’m I supposed to find you?” Next, a memorial statue from her search for Matt with a dark figure in shadows. Trigel on Daibazaal pointing to the comets tail. “Maybe I should tell him what I saw and what I have been able to piece together.” The next card showed the conference room on the Atlas with Galra on one side and MFE pilots on the other. “Acxa, what were you trying to tell me?” Then, she had a card with Keith’s face, including his wet hair, as he stared intently at a prized possession.

She stopped to examine in better detail as she reviewed the card with two people their faces concealed cuddling for warmth in a forest. “How can he be engaged?” She carefully placed it in the box as tears threated to fall. She picked up her last card with Keith laughing while lying in bed. “Keith, I hope you find happiness with your engagement. You have earned it.” Setting the last card inside, she picked up a flower and dropped it inside before she closed the lid and slipped it back into her bag. 

Opening the door, Pidge slung her backpack over her shoulder and made her way back to James and Veronica. During her travel Pidge’s mind wondered to the recent letter she sent Keith. By the time she made it back, she was in full panic mode.

Pidge noticed James opened his mouth and then closed it, obviously thinking better of commenting. She walked past them and headed straight for the computer. She checked the system and found they were close to landing. Thankful for the quiet, Pidge missed the strange look between James and Veronica. 

Taking her seat, she pulled up her letter on the screen in front of her. She needed to know what she gave away and what was yet to be discovered. She had to question her own sanity for mentioning Trigel’s home planet to Keith, her mental breakdown on Altea, her need to see him and why sign it with her real name. She cleared the screen as they entered the docking area.

James broke her out of her dazed with excitement in his voice. “Oh look, Keith made it before us. Isn’t that great?” James stayed focus on the controls and missed her a non-committal nod.

Pidge stomach flipped as she gazed at Krolia’s ship while her mind processed what this meant. As James maneuvered the ship to land, she released the breath that she didn’t know she held. “Too late to hide now. Lance would totally sell me out to Keith.”

“Wow. I never thought you would be scared of anything.” James broke out in a smile as he shut the ship computer down. “Want to talk about it?”

Pidge stood and faced him. “No, I’m good.”

James smiled and stood. “Something is going on with all of the Paladins. Just know we are here for you and I can be a great listener.”

Pidge rolled her eyes and made to leave to leave, but Veronica gentle touched Pidge’s arm. Veronica held her eyes on Pidge as she spoke. “Some of the things said earlier need to be said by those directly involved. We wouldn’t want rumors floating around.”

Instantly, Pidge understand that they were afraid she would reveal their secrets not her own. “Seriously, you two are worried I don’t know how to keep a secret?” She laughed, for the first time in weeks, Pidge laughed so hard she feared she couldn’t stop. “Trust me. Nothing the two of you have as secrets are as big and life altering as mine.” Shaking her head, she put her laptop in her bag and left.

As she threaded through the crew and past the docking station, she made her way to the main entrance leaving the others behind. 

Pidge opened the side door to the hall and spotted Keith reading a tablet. His mom was at his side with Kolivan, Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor not far behind.

The alien from the Coalition argued with Lance as a very tall woman with features similar to Trigel paced between them and Keith’s group. “We were expecting the Green Paladin and not the Red Paladin and I am sure they consider you inquisitive as well. Galra.” He gestured to Keith as he raised his voice. “Their kind is not welcome here!” 

Due to the yelling her traveling companions joined Pidge at the door. However, Pidge slammed the door open to announce her arrival.

She kept her voice even and focused on the Coalition member. “You have every right to be mad at Zarkon for the awful things he did. No one in this room is responsible for his actions. The Blade fought against Zarkon and aided the Paladins in our fight against tyranny.” He started to interrupted, Pidge moved closer and raised her voice. “I have a legitimate right not to trust at least two in this room, but with knowledge and time, we can learn to move past our fears. We can learn acceptance and change for the better.”

Pidge ignored the man as his mouth opened and closed like a fish. She made a direct path for the woman who made this planet her home. “We are sorry for interrupting your time of enlightenment, it could not be helped.” Pidge bowed with her head, then raised up to stare into the woman’s eyes. 

The woman mimicked the gesture before speaking. “Trigel would have loved to have someone like you around. Someone who values intelligence/knowledge.” She glanced back toward the man and flicked her hand toward him. “Leave, for you are upsetting our honored guest, and we will not turn the Green Paladin away.”

“When can I leave to see the Galra installation?” Glancing at the group she came with, Pidge nodded to them. “It would be a scouting mission and then the bigger team can come after.”

The woman laughed as she motioned for the larger doors to open. “I see you inquisitive and adventurous as well.” She motioned to other inhabitants while she linked arms with Pidge. “Follow me, we have a dinner for all of you. We can discuss the Galra outpost. Oh where are my manors, I am the leader here and my name is Atalanta. It is an honor to meet you.”

“The honor is ours. My name is Pidge and this is…” Pidge said happily, but was interrupted by Atalanta ushering the group to the next room. 

A pale blue skinned native walked up to Atalanta and nodded to Pidge, then spoke with urgency in hushed tones. “My lady, I hate to interrupt, but we are running out of time. We will be discovered soon, can they move quickly?”

She lowered her voice so only Pidge could hear them. “This is the head of my royal guard, Melark. He arranged for our meeting. Ever since the Galra post activated two months ago, the elders wanted it abolished. When I spoke out and said we should explore the ruins, they stated it was time to abdicated my sovereignty.”

“How can I help?”

Melark checked a device on his wrist and spoke louder so other could hear. “My lady dinner is ready for our honored guests. If you like I can show the Green Paladin here where to freshen up and we can join you shortly.”

His question came from behind Pidge as Keith step up to them. “We both need to freshen up and we are more than happy to help. Besides, I need to speak to her before she goes to dinner.”

Atalanta’s regal tone filled the small space. “Melark, please show them to the room at the end of the hall and I will escort the rest to dinner.” She waved everyone on to the next room with a smile on her face, as if she was completely happy with this turn of events.

Melark walked swiftly for a tall man, but Pidge had to almost run to keep up. Once they neared the end of the hallway, Melark slowed down. 

Keith passed him without hesitation and raised his voice for anyone nearby. “Be mad all you want.” As he entered the t intersection, he stopped and spun back to face her. “I’m here to talk to you, not here for you side project.”

“Really, you wouldn’t have come if Lance had taken this mission.” Stopping in front of him the two squared off. “I maybe the youngest, but I can do thing for myself. I can handle a Galra outpost.”

Leaning in to her face, Keith snarled. “Lance doesn’t get distracted by technology. Besides, for all you know this is an old Galra trap that went off accidentally.”

Something inside of her broke, even if Pidge knew this was only for show, she had to know. “You trust Lance. So that’s why you called him last night and told him all about your little problem? But you didn’t tell me.” He jerked back as if she hit him. She felt him poke at the Paladin bond, so she let him feel her hurt. “You thought what? Come here and take over? Put Lance in charge?” His eyes had a weird mix of emotions, but she couldn’t decipher them. “Who is it?”

His eyes glance left as Keith broke character. “We are trying to have a private conversation. Can we help you?”

A native man, who wore a resemblance to Slav, looked behind himself and then back to Keith. “This corridor is off limits.” He pointed to the doors where the two of them were originally headed. “You could go in there and no one would know.”

Keith grabbed her wrist, mumbled a thanks and dragged her behind the doors. “We need to get to the outpost before the storm hits and we lose our change to leave.” He locked the door behind him before moving over to a jet-black hover bike. “Once we get there, we can talk in detail about the cryptic conversation we just had.” His meaning was clear, they would talk about it regardless of her opinion.

“How do you know about the storm?”

Picking up a bag from the table, he strapped it to the bike. Walking to the far door, he never even glimpsed at her. “Melark told Atalanta that he worried you would not make it in time. They were worried about someone keeping you from the outpost.” He opened the door with ease, then moved back to the bike. Getting on the bike, he turned to her. “Well, get on.” When she opened her mouth to argue, Keith nodded his head no. “Pidge, get on. We don’t have time for deliberations.” 

Slowly she slid on the back, placing her bag between them, then she reached to hold onto his side as her mind wondered why he demanded to come with her. 

Accelerating outside into the heat, Keith floored it. He zigged and zagged around trees, through a creek bed and up a slight incline. He jerked hard left causing him to laugh. “I have missed this!” Keith cut another tight turn causing her to reach all the way around him and hold him tighter. “Now we’re talking.”

When he finally came to a stop, he didn’t move causing Pidge to become concerned. Her voice barely above the wind and slight drizzle that began to fall. “What are you waiting for?” 

“I am unsure.” He mumbled, then slid his hand over hers causing her to drop her grip. “It felt nice.” The drizzle turned to rain as they sat on the bike. “We should get inside, unless you want to sit here all night.” 

Shaking her head in disagreement, she climbed off and headed for the old Galra outpost. It appeared to have fallen apart thousands of year ago. Going straight to work, she used on her wrist unit and suddenly the door creaked open enough for them to enter with the bike. Keith held out her bag when she turned around and found him a few feet away with the bike. Slinging it on her shoulder she watched as he repeated the action. Ducking inside the building with the bike, Pidge took a deep breath and followed.

Dark but warm, Pidge entered the room to find Keith securing the bike off to the side. Completely ignoring her as she shut the door, his voice filled the room as he worked. “The rain should wash away the evidence that we were outside. I’m guessing you tricked the computers like you did at the castle to prevent anyone from tracking your movements.”

“Yes. I don’t like being monitored or followed.” She stood next to him and watched him work for a few minutes before speaking again. “I’m going to investigate the source of the signal. Let me know if you find anything out of the ordinary.” She moved quickly to the nearest panel, dropped her bag by her feet and focused on finding the source of the activation this post sent. Her fingers flew over the keys as she found several data files of interest. Opening the first file and scanned the code. Nothing out of the ordinary. She opened the second file while softly requesting help. ‘Keith, can you pull out these little round disks out of my back pack?” She felt movement to her left as Keith opened her bag and went through the content. “They look like little disks, but they store enormous amounts of data. I also put a translation code to aid in decryption.” The next file talked about an activation of some devices due to a primary activation. Turning to Keith, she froze. 

In one hand he still held the strap of her bag, but in the other he held the puzzle box. His voice sounded unnaturally edgy. “When did you open it?”

She wondered what made him so edgy, because he was the one who sent the box to her. “After leaving Earth, but before getting here. Actually, it was after we left Altea and before arriving here.” She wanted to ramble on, but his eyes never left the Galra object in his hand. “How did you know I opened it?”

His eyes traveled to her as he released the strap while lowering his voice. “My shirt is in your bag. That is unless you stole one in the past, which I doubt.” Thunder shook the door, but he ignored it. “You have a choice to make right here and now.” His free hand reached up to cup her cheek while shifting closer to her. “You asked me who is it.” Slowly he moved his face closer to hers. “So, you know that I am engaged, but not by who?”

Stepping back to avoid his contact failed because he followed her. “Congratulations. I hope the two of you are very happy together.”

Smirking, his eyes flick to her lips and back to her eyes. “You mean, congrats to us.” Lifting the box slightly, he continued. “In opening the box, you acknowledged my proposal. However, you still have an out, that is, if you want to hear it?”

She swallowed hard as she stood her ground while he refused to back down. “You want to be engaged to me? You’re okay with this? Why?” Her eyes darted to his lips and back to his eyes causing her to lick her lips.

“At first I was a little shocked and I wondered if you could ever look at me the same.” His lips curled up in a smirk as he inched closer to her face. “Then, I remembered one of my recent dreams.” Keith took a deep breath calming himself before continuing. “You, in my bed, with only my black shirt on. I realized I wanted this more than anything. I need to know Katie, do you want to be with me or not?”

“Am I asleep or is this really happening?”

His thumb ran over her lips causing her to part her lips. “Katie, this is really happening, and I need to know if I am out of line.” He took a deliberate pause while the storm relentlessly attacked the Galra outpost.

“All of this because of some dreams and a puzzle box?” She licked her lips and caught the taste of peanut butter on her lips. His smile let her know he planned for this encounter. “Keith, you’re not playing fair.” 

He leaned down, skipped her face and went directly to her neck and placed a light kiss at the base of her neck. “Katie, you need to answer my question. Otherwise, you’re not being fair.” 

His chuckle did things to her she wasn’t ready to face yet. Pidge swallowed hard and tried to compose her thoughts while he left a trail of kisses on her neck. “The truth is, I have thought about us… and if you are serious… and this is not a another dream… and not under the influence of some weird magic… and you feel the same… and you think you can put up with my messes… and you can handle all my science projects… and we can figure out where to live… and what we will…”

He whispered something in Galra she didn’t understand, before kissing her again. He placed his lips at her ear and whispered. “I have to admit. Your rambling is sexy.” Kissing her neck, Keith nudged her neck with his nose. “Katie, do you want to be with me? Yes or no?”

“Yes.” She barely whispered before his lips crushed hers. His hand left her face to pull her closer as the other set the box on the panel behind her. The invisible wall between them shattered opened their newly formed bond.

Astonished and distracted by this turn of events, neither noticed the raging storm outside or the panel lighting up in a rainbow of color. 

She reached up and pulled his neck closer to deepened the kiss, her fingers played with his hair. For an instant, she felt amazed that she hadn’t woken up yet.

His arms envelope her and forced their chests to make contact. Breaking away from their kiss, he found her neck again. Glancing down, Keith pulled back and pointed to the panel. “Why is the screen counting down?”

Pidge took a moment to registered what he said and faced the panel. “Keith, I need one of my storage devices now.” She flew through the files finding words she didn’t understand. “I’ve heard this before, but where?” Keith handed her the disks and she set them on the operating panel. “Hypnogogic and Himitsu-Bako.” 

He slid the box into her bag, when he touched her shoulder. “What does it say about Hypnogogic and Himitsu-Bako?”

She activated the devices to gather what she could, then stored the information. “When the Hypnogogic is triggered, it will depend on the acting Galra Lord to decide if the Himitsu-Bako should initiate the new cycle.” Changing the screen to show the outside area, Pidge frowned. “It appears it is raining so hard it will flood portions on this valley. It is not safe to be here, the counter is letting us know how much time is remaining.”

Keith saw the numbers and knew that had 5 minutes to get out of here. “Let’s go.” When she grabbed his arm, he ran his free fingers over hers. “I can explain more when we get to safety, but Hypnogogic is the Galra state of dreaming that connects us. Himitsu-Bako is the ancient name for our puzzle box. It appears we started a chain reaction.” Handing her bag back, he smiled. “We might want to keep this to ourselves until we have figured out who we can tell, and how much danger we are in.”

“We can use the hover bike in the tunnels leading to the city until it gets too narrow. Then if the tunnel gets flooded, we might stand a chance riding the wave to the end.”

Leaning down, Keith whispered. “Lead the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love comments and Kudos.
> 
> I do not have an editor or reviewer. Sorry for any mistakes.  
> Hope you enjoy.
> 
> I will explain the cards later...


	6. Surviving the storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Pidge both know they are engaged.

After three hours of slowly navigating the tunnel and avoiding the flooded areas, they finally reached the trees with a slim moonlight to guide them. They sloshed through the mud to make it to the edge of tree line. Rain fell in heavy sheets, but the trees sheltered them from the onslaught. The road they travel on hours before to get to the outpost became a raging river.

Keith scowled at their predicament, then noticed a matching look on Pidge’s face. “Go ahead and say it. I know what you’re thinking.”

“The first person you tell is Lance.” She shook her head in disbelief. “Not Shiro or Hunk, but Lance. Also, you talked to him over the phone where his siblings could hear you. They can be worse than Allura, Hunk and the mice.”

He chuckled and put his hand up to defend himself. “Honestly, that is not what I thought you would say.” When her eyes narrowed on him, he smiled. “Lance is the right hand of Voltron, second in command and he called me. I thought his siblings couldn’t hear us. Have you been thinking about this the whole time?”

Shaking her head, no, Pidge’s voice sounded far away. “Yes. No. We are close to the place a dreamed about recently.” Her eyes glanced behind her to the place she drew of the couple cuddling. “I saw a couple keeping warm under that tree. The royal guards arrive to escort them to safety, but I never saw their faces. I wonder now if it was Melark and Atalanta.”

He seemed unfazed by the conversation. “That is a new one to me. It is strange that we saw some of the same things and yet, other encounters were different.” Checking the tree line again, Keith felt himself relax enough to ask a different question. “Since some of our experiences were different, did you see me in the cemetery?”

Shrugging her shoulders as a non-committal answer, Pidge rubbed her temple. “Yes, but I didn’t know who it was at the time.” Her eyes glanced back at the tree and then to him. “I saw more than that, but can we talk about this later? It feels weird talking here, in this place.”

Keith smiled and nodded. “Sure.” He opened the bag he recovered from the hoverbike, then placed the contents on the ground. “We should be an hour from our destination. If we start walking now, we will be drenched by the time we make it. However, we have no guarantee the storm will let up. Time may not be on our side.” Examining the content on the ground, he sighed. “I thought maybe it would have a tent or a radio.” He carefully placed the content back in the bag. 

She rubbed her hand over her face and failed to cover her yawn. 

“When was the last time you slept?” When she didn’t answer, he moved closer. “Pidge?” Her eyes focused on him, but he could see the tiredness. “When was the last time you slept?”

Her eyes narrowed on him. “I am not sleeping here. We should attempt the walk back to the docking station. It is only a half hour walk from here.” She pointed up river to higher ground in the opposite direction. “If the coalition man is still in charge, we would be better to walk toward our original destination.”

Sighing at their choices, Keith kept emotion at of his voice. “The hour walk is safer, but the weather could get worse. Let’s head to higher ground.” He slipped his bag onto his shoulder as he checked for anything he could have forgotten.

Pidge nodded yes and stood to stretch before speaking. “Besides, Lance is there and we have to make sure we keep him in the loop.” Then she smirked and looked over she shoulder at him. He rolled his eyes causing she to laugh. “You never said if he helped you or not.”

Keith stepped out from the tree line to a flash of light emanating from his right in the space beyond where Pidge stood. A growing concern hit him when he remembered the dream where he handed over his blade. He could see the field in the distance where he will pass out. Without hesitation, Keith tackled Pidge covering her with his body. After a few moments, he sat up thinking he had overreacted until he saw blood on Pidge’s shirt. “Blood.”

Before he could reach for her, Pidge scrambled for her bag and pulled out his black shirt. She ripped it into strips, then wrapped the cloth around his head. “It doesn’t look deep, but I don’t know if it will need stitches.” She took a second piece and covered the first. When he winced, she joked with him. “Toughen up you big baby.”

Keith’s head throbbed as he tried to recall the dream fully. “We need to move. We will be exposed in the field, but it’s our best shot.” Standing too quickly, Keith swayed until Pidge held him in place.

Pidge reviewed the area and whispered. “I need to bend down to reach my bag.” As she leaned down, he leaned with her. “Keith, can you sit for a moment?” 

He let her go and straightened his body to stand on his own. “We need to hurry.”

Moving quickly, she wondered how he knew what would happen next. “Head wounds bled a lot.” She took a calming breath, slung her bag on her shoulder and slid under his arm to help him stand. “We can move at whatever speed you are comfortable.” She felt some of his weight shift toward her and she suppressed a growl.

Keith sighed and tightened his grip on her shoulder, then relaxed. “Let’s go.” They moved back to the tree line at a good speed. “We need to cross the opening in the field next to us. If I pass out, leave me.”

“Definitely. Cause you are too heavy to pick up.” She gripped his arm as the made their way into the field moving quicker than expected. Pink rain fell from purple clouds as they left the shelter of the trees that felt warm to her skin. “How did you know what to do?”

Slightly panting, Keith kept moving as he spoke. “I had a dream about us being chased. I don’t make it and I try to give you my blade. You take it, but you wouldn’t leave me. You said... It doesn’t matter.” He felt his energy draining, but he kept moving. “If I fall, take my blade with you.”

She made a noise somewhere between a snort and a laugh. “Like I would leave you behind.” Surprised they made it to the halfway point, she felt the rain drip down her back and her arm closest to Keith. “We will be there in no time.”

His vision blurred slightly as he heard movement behind them. “You need to go while I will slow them down. Go on without me.”

“Paladin’s stick together,” was the last thing Pidge said as he lost consciousness. 

Waking up in the infirmary, Keith noticed a few key things. First, he awoke in the Atlas med bay. Second, his head didn’t hurt as bad, but he was still sore. Third, he wore a fresh set of clothes. Fourth, no one was around to watch him. Lastly, he couldn’t remember anything after the field with Pidge.

James Griffin voice came over the intercom and it took a moment to make out his words. “MFE pilots and bridge support staff report to the main conference room immediately.”

Sitting up, Keith realized the dizziness was gone. He moved over to the door as someone started to open it from the other side. Then, a certain wolf appeared next to Keith causing him to whispered more to himself. “Katie.” 

Teleported to the conference room, Keith was in the far back behind the Galra leaders. Kolivan, Krolia and several other high ranking Galra generals sat at the conference room table. Across from him, Lance and Hunk sat with the MFE pilots. Sam, Collen and Matt stood next to Shiro by the head of the table. On the large screen behind Shiro, coalition and freedom fighters were divided into sections.

From his angle, Keith could not see Pidge anywhere and when he glanced back the wolf was gone.

Melark stood behind Atalanta as she spoke to the Shiro. “According to our sources, we have apprehended all of those involved with the uprising. We understand having Galra, friendly Galra, here has set off some unrest. We apologize for the injuries attained during their visit.”

General Trugg, who fought on behalf of Zarkon and who vocalized her distrust of Kolivan, snapped back at Atalanta. “We demand justice. Your hatred of Galra will be the downfall of your planet.”

Kolivan cleared his throat as he drummed his fingers on the table. “Trugg, we will leave the people of the Dalterion Belt to the Alliance and the Paladins. As for the shooter and his accomplices fall under Paladin jurisdiction.”

Throk laughed at their exchange. “Silly Kolivan, the Black Paladin was almost killed. We have Galra across the universe starving and now a rumor of new Galra Lord. Are you thinking it is you?”

The room exploded in yelling and it was more than Keith could take. The Galra yelled among themselves as others tried to get them to calm down. 

Keith’s head throbbed and he remembered his conversation with Zarkon. Pushing past the crowd, Keith made it to the head of the table to yell at the generals. “This could be the end of the Galra as we know it. What is wrong with all of you, acting like you deserve everything without earning it. Our traditions need to change, or it is the end of all of us.” He slammed his hand on the table, but he didn’t need to cause a scene for everyone focused on him. “When he visited me in my dream, I asked Zarkon, how do you bring them together without going to war?” Taking a calming breath, Keith stood up straight and watched the faces of the Galra leaders. “The Galra should not fear change.”

Throk glanced around at the other, then spoke without hesitation. “What was meant by my dream?”

Keith glanced at Lance and back to Throk. “From what I know the Galra called them Hypnogogic dreams.”

Small Morvok on his flying disk moved closer to Keith. “You lie.”

Facing the smaller Galra general, Keith spoke with confidence. “I opened the Himitsu-Bako four to five months ago. Two months ago, the dreams started. I sent the Himitsu-Bako or puzzle box as I like to call it to someone. I know now that this signifies, I am the next in line to rule the Galra and giving the box away was my way of proposing marriage to the receiver.”

Both female generals Trugg and Ladnok share a head nod. Then, Trugg raised her voice as a challenge. “If what you say is true, then you can prove it. Where is the puzzle box now?”

“I will show you all, if I get total agreement that you will allow the cycle to play out. Deal?”

Whispering broke out among the Galra as Keith glanced at Shiro. As usual, Keith had no idea what thoughts the former Paladin had. Risking a chance, Keith scanned the room and found most of his friends appeared confused or worried. Looking back at the Galra, Keith noticed a small figure between Acxa and Zethrid. He smiled when he saw Pidge giving him a death glare.

Throk stood as a hush fell over the Galra. “We are all in agreement to support your claim if you can present the Himitsu-Bako to us here and now.”

When Kolivan nodded yes, Keith turned back to Acxa, Pidge and Zethrid. His tone held an apologetic tone as he held out his hand. “Can you please show them the box and open it for them? You do not need to show them the content, just that you can open the box unassisted.”

Several gasped loudly as Pidge, who still wore a death glare, stepped forward. “Where you released by doctors, or did you sneak out?” She stared him down and refused to move until he answered.

“No one was around and I was feeling better. Besides, a certain space wolf helped get me here.” He smiled knowing he was in trouble either way.

Mumbling to herself, she slipped her bag from her shoulder. “Cosmo is getting a bath if he likes it or not.” She continued as she reached into the bag and spoke in a mocking tone. “Oh Pidge, go on without me. You don’t need to drag me a thousand yards to safety.”

His face matched his concern. “What?”

She pulled out the box and dropped her bag to the floor. “We will talk later.” Her finger flew over the surface and instantly the box opened. She showed it around the room for all the observers to see. “Happy?” She all but spat at Throk. Turning back to Keith, she closed the box. “It’s not a soul business but mine what’s inside. You can’t have it back.”

“Katie, I am sorry for putting you on the spot.” His hand tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “They go to war with each other, it would cause too much loss.” He smiled at her as her features softened. “You didn’t see Zarkon that night, did you?”

She hesitated as she closed the box and held it to her chest. “Trigel. I saw and talked to Trigel.” Her silence spoke volumes to him. 

Turning back the Galra Generals, Keith kept his face unemotional. “On our journey to our next location, we can talk as a group as to our next moves. Please allow the next few hours to get everyone to stand down.” Keith turned to the monitors. “As the acting Galra representative, I expect the Galra mistreatment to end. As a people, we followed Zarkon’s rule and we forgot some of our basic ideals, which will be come the foundation of our future. Thank you for the time for us to develop our new goals, please allow us time to grow.”

Melark smiled at Keith and nodded in agreement. “What of Booby George the third?” Keith glanced at Pidge in confusion causing Melark to elaborate. “The one who shot you.”

Keith saw the upturn of Pidge’s smile so he put it out of his mind. “What is the standard punishment?”

“Rehabilitation by protecting the one he injured or any punishment fitting his crime.”

Rolo screen lit up as he spoke with excitement. “Hey Keith, we could use another set of hands for a while. He is welcome on our ship. We could teach him what it is like to learn that not all Galra are the same.” 

Keith nodded in agreement before saying yes. “Agreed.” Shifting to the left, Keith felt the throbbing build in his temple. “Generals, lets meet up later to discuss strategy.” Every one of them nodded to Keith as they left and several nodded to Pidge as well. Several goodbyes were exchanged with the Coalition and the Rebels, leaving Keith to nod.

Once the monitors were off and most of the Galra gone, Lance moved closer to Keith. “Well, Keith you look like your hurts and Pidge hasn’t sleep in two days.” Both gave him a dirty look before turning on each other.

“You said you would sleep once we got back.”

“You were in the med bay with blood gushing from your head.” 

Collen stepped between them. “Time out.” She made eye contact with her daughter before switching to Keith. “She couldn’t sleep. She kept checking the cameras, sneaking in to see you and wouldn’t talk about what happened. She wouldn’t let the doctors look at her bruises.”

Pidge rolled her eyes, but Keith was unconvinced. “What bruises?” As her mom reached for her neck, Pidge stepped back. Only Keith was faster and he pulled back the shirt to see a string of what her mom called bruises. The two stood frozen for a moment before he recovered first and released his hold on her shirt. “Let me talk to her.”

Satisfied that Keith would deal with her daughter, Collen left. She took Sam, Shiro and a few non-essential personnel. Leaving the Paladins, MFE pilots, Romelle, Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor to watch the madness.

As soon as the door closed, Pidge rounded on Keith. “Bruises! Bruises! Do you have any idea how many times someone asked me to go to the med bay?” He opened his mouth, but she continued. “Oh, and we activated the outpost and it set off an alarm that lasted 17 minutes before we tried to stop it.” She growled at him before she glanced around the room. “We have eight more markers to go.”

“First, I’m sorry you had to show everyone you got the box.” He reached for her elbow and she let his hand rest there.

“I don’t care about that.”

Nodding in confirmation, Keith stepped closer. “Second, sorry I snapped at you about sleeping. Right now, it is hard to close my eyes because I am not sure what I will see next.” Considering she shrugged off the comment, he needed to expand his response. “127,098 brave warriors that stood against tyranny…”  
Her frown also brought him the eye contact he wanted. “Next time we will take back up with us in case we get distracted.”

“Seventeen minutes’ worth.” She said distractedly.

Keith chuckled. “You didn’t complain during those seventeen minutes where you got about five to six hickeys.” Someone gasped behind him, but Keith didn’t care. “That is about one every three and a half minutes.” He saw her smirk returning. “Seriously, we need a chaperon.”

She stepped closer and blushed. “You got shot by a guy named Bobby George the third.”

Keith smiled back. “I know, I’m losing my bad boy rep. Next, Lance would be the cool one.” She chuckled as someone (probably Lance) said hey. He turned to the group and found most of them looking away from them. “So, who wants to join us on a dangerous mission where you could get shot, drown or exploded?”

James smiled. “Well, when you put it like that, sure.”

Veronica stared at Pidge before speaking. “I’m sorry if I upset you on our way here.”

Ryan stepped closer to Pidge and blocked Veronica’s view. “I recorded the meeting like you asked, we can look at it later if you want.”

“I’m going to take a shower, curl up under some covers and sleep. After I wake up and get something to eat, we can talk about the night the lions left. Until then, if you have time, talk to the others about their experience. Learn about the lions.” She picked up her bag, breaking her contact with Keith. “I’m okay with all of you being there when I tell you what happened, but no one outside of this room.” She turned to Keith and opened her mouth to say something and stopped. Then, she nodded no. “Good night Keith.”

“And… And… And…” He said until she smiled over her shoulder before she left. Keith watched the door wondering if he should follower her. As Lance neared him, Keith studied him. “Inside joke.” 

Lance laughed, placing a hand on Keith’s shoulder. “Wow, look at you joking around, smiling, laughing, even have a girlfriend. If I didn’t know better, I would say you are having fun.” Lance moved to Keith’s right side dropping his hand to his side. “What happened to you?”

Keith shrugged and smiled. “Well, I was chosen to rule a bunch of unruly teenagers, wait, that was when I became the Black Paladin. No, I was picked to rule a violent race and then accidentally proposed to my friend.”

“Don’t forget you’re a Texan who was shot by a guy named Bobby George, III.”

“How could I, you two won’t let me forget it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who should I make the Blue Paladin....  
> Veronica, Matt, Romelle, Acxa, Merla (Altean with Coran in final scenes), La-Sai (Olkarian was prisoner with Lubos), or an unknown character I make up.  
> Each one sounds appealing, but each has drawbacks.  
> Let me know what you guys think. I haven't finished my thoughts and I am leaning toward two in particular, but I am curious as to others opinion.  
> Thanks.


	7. Future discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the team moves forward, what will Keith and Pidge see next?

After sleeping eight full hours and working in her lab for four, Pidge relaxed on the Atlas had arrived at the second Galra post. Slightly disappointed they didn’t have time to talk, Pidge kept to herself as they split up into groups. 

Pidge felt an intensity build within the paladin bond, but she didn’t pinpoint the source. She remembered Hunk stayed on the Atlas, Lance went with the MFEs to check the perimeter and Keith went with Acxa next door to go through the shelves of artifacts. When she checked on them individually, she felt their moods and nothing seemed off. Taking a deep breath, she calmed her mind and concentrated on the task in front of her. Her mind raced as she drowned out the conversation going on around her between Veronica, Matt, Romelle and Merla.

Merla the red headed Altea that typically helps out Cora, but who once was on the side of Honerva during the final battle, approached Pidge. She whispered so only Pidge could hear her. “Excuse me Paladin, can I be of assistance?” 

Pidge continued to type on the Galra station control panel as Merla gestured to the console where she worked. “Merla, I’ve told you that you can call me Pidge.” A chance look at Veronica, Pidge relaxed as Romelle kept Veronica and Matt busy. “Computers are less drama.”

Merla nodded in understanding as she watched Pidge type. “Coran said that you are the smartest being he has ever met.” She watched Pidge freeze at her words, but she continued anyway. “However, knowledge is only important when shared with others.”

Pidge turned and watched Merla’s face. “Merla, thank you for your reminder.” She pulled out her special box and picked up her radio. “Keith, I’m going to activate the sensor, are in in position?”

“Everyone is ready.” Keith replied.

She enhanced the beacon’s range before placing the box on the station. For a brief moment, the beacon in front of her signaled the nearest three and combined in strength. Pidge smiled as this device pulled the power from the other and shut them down. The energy pulsed around her and heard someone faintly say her name as the light from the device got brighter. As the device shut off, the light turned purple and embraced her. Closing her eyes from the light, Pidge reached out and placed her hand over the box.

A sharp pain shot behind her eyes stopped when she opened her eyes. Only she wasn’t next to the beacon, instead she stood a few feet away from a man with his back to her. The man seemed familiar but she couldn’t place him. His haircut reminded her of Keith’s dad, but Keith’s dad was taller. Taking in her surrounding, she found herself inside a bedroom with Galra markings. Door behind her, a four-post bed in front of her, the man stood by a desk and a windowsill with a seat. Pidge blushed at her situation, while he focused on the console instead of turning to face her. Out of nowhere, Keith appeared next to her causing her to smiled at his presence, even if she wasn’t sure if he was real. Before they could speak, a door opened behind them and they heard footsteps.

Straightening his back at the sound, he kept moving items around on his screen. He ran his left hand through his short hair near his neck and revealed a wedding ring. He chuckled as the footsteps grew closer. “Busted.”

An older version of Pidge with long flowing hair passed the younger couple and hugged the man from behind. “I heard that we have one more night of freedom.”

He rotated to face her as she smirked. “Yes, your parents are delayed, which means…”

“We are free of Paladin, Galra and parenting duties for another night, which means we get a night of debauchery and recklessness.” Her wicked smirk appeared as she raised her eyebrows. “I’m looking forward to taking advantage of the Black Paladin.” Her arms wrapped around his neck as she leaned into him. 

Shaking his head no, Keith ran one hand followed her hair flowing down her back, where the other gripped her hip. “Advantage implies that the benefit is yours. I believe our time together is mutually gratifying.”

Pidge stared at older Keith to examine his face and it was clear to her it was still him, just older. Time had been kind to him and clearly his feelings for the woman in his arms ran deep. Glancing to her Keith, she found him staring at the older version of her. Following his lead, shocked hit her when she saw the beautiful, playful creature she will become. 

Older Keith played with older Pidge’s hair as she pulled away from his kiss to pull him closer to the bed. He went willingly and let her push him down to sit and smiled as she climbed on top. “Please tell me you locked the door.” Her smile caused him to roll his eyes. “Katie, you know Lance will come to report what he found.” 

Climbing onto his lap, Pidge grabbed the end of his t-shirt. “Then he should learn that when the two of us are alone, to leave us that way.” Pulling from the bottom and yanking over his head, she freed him from his shirt. “Besides, he’s had sex with more people than I would even want to count.”

Pulling her closer and forcing chest to chest contact, Keith whispered. “Yes, but you’re his little sassy sister and I’m an honorary brother. Lance has a hard time seeing us like this.”

“I know what else is hard.”

“I am scarred for life.” Lance whined as he stayed by the door. “Keith, I knocked, and entered when I heard my name.” He had also aged well, while wearing the same haircut from their youth, but he kept shaking his head as if to clear the image of his friends. “You would think once you hit thirty the two of you would settle down some.” Keeping his eyes away from his friends, Lance cleared his throat then exhaled loudly. “Anyways, whatever Pidge did to the atmosphere worked. The planet has stabilized and the plants are growing. You two enjoy your kid free evening while I go find my own entertainment.” He turned, turned the handle to the lock position. “I will lock this for you. Night.” Then, he left without another word.

“Night Lance.” She mumbled, before he lifted her and pinned her to the bed.

Smiling, he glanced back at the door. Focusing back on her, Keith held her arms above her head. “Time for our fun to continue.”

A blinding light filled the room and Pidge felt her body hit the floor. The floor was hard and cold, but then she realized she was pinned by a body. Her head hurt more than when she placed the box on the console. Then, she was covered in darkness.

Mumbling and yelling surrounded her, but she couldn’t pull herself from the darkness. She heard voices that sounded like Lance and Matt, then Keith.

“Please wake up, beautiful.” Keith’s voice whispered to her as she processed what happened. “Katie, please open your eyes.” He sounded broken and tired as he whispered. “I love you Katie.”

Opening her eyes, she noticed the lights were low. Keith held her hand as he slept with his head by her arm. Matt was in the doorway with the doctor as Veronica sat next to Lance who was asleep in a guest chair. Once the doctor left, Matt gently shook Keith’s shoulder until Keith sat up.

Matt whispered caused the McClain siblings to sit up. “They say she will wake up at any time. Her levels have stabilized. She is free to go once she wakes up.” Lance tugged at Matt arm, but Matt ignored him. “Keith, you saved her life.” Matt swatted Lance’s hand away when he tugged again. “If you hadn’t pulled her away from the console, she would be…” Lance tugged harder making Matt turn to him. “What?”

Lance pointed to Pidge, then spoke with his brotherly voice. “Did you have a nice nap?”

Her eyes hurt to focus so she turned her head to face Matt and Keith. She opened her mouth to speak but she sounded off. “Someone knocked me down.” She closed her eyes and squeezed Keith’s hand before releasing him. “I’m hungry. Can I get something to eat?”

Keith stood and motioned to the door. “We will be along in a few minutes.” Waiting for the group to leave, Keith nodded to Lance and then Matt as they left. “Let’s start by you sitting up.” She tilted her head side to side causing him to raise an eyebrow. “What are you doing?”

Pidge’s voice returned to normal as she rotated her body to sit up. “You still have your hair.” Then, she covered her mouth with her hand, but it was too late from his smirk.

Blushing slightly, Keith leaned close to her face. “Dinner first, then we go back to my room and talk at length at what you did.” Tilting his head from side to side mimicking her, Keith ran his hand over his face. “We can talk about what you see while dreaming.” His cheeks reddened before he whispered. “We should include the latest, where we celebrated our night alone.”

She covered her face as she whispered back. “You saw that?” When he sat next to her, Pidge dropped her hand but didn’t look at him. “We seem very intense when were alone.” Instinctually, he had laced their fingers together and it gave her the strength to get something off her chest. “Did you think we would ever end up together?”

He squeezed her hand and spoke with a conviction she didn’t know she missed. “After the lions left, I wondered if this was the end of our friendship. Then you came to my room.” He leaned in and got her to face him. “Honestly, I was disappointed you left.” His eyes showed an array of emotion as he watched her closely. “I wanted you then, but I didn’t want to pressure you. Are you upset we are engaged?”

Blushing, she slid off the bed and stood next to him. “I am not upset. However, it feels out of order. Our relationship has so many words to describe the past and future. Such as strangers, fellow Paladins, friends, partner in crime, fiancé, boyfriend, husband and parents. We are so weird.”

Sliding off the bed to stand over her, Keith whispered. “Don’t forget passionate lover.”

She roller her eyes as she leaned down and put on her shoes. “Will you always crowd me?” She was rewarded with a snort from him as she glanced at him cautiously. “Okay, lets get food and then we can go back to your room and talk.” When he snorted again, she rolled her eyes and let her lead her to food.

Neither talked as they walked, but he did keep a hold of her hand as they passed several workers on the Atlas. Entering the cafeteria, she found her parents talking with Iverson, Shiro and Krolia.

Axca stood talking to Veronica and Matt, while Zethrid and Ezor was less than two feet away. James and Ina laughed at Hunk and Ryan arguing over food arrangements. Meanwhile, Nadia, Romelle and Merla watched as Lance avoided the glass of Nuvil Coran kept handing him.

Coran held up a glass of Nuvil and yelled. “Hunk you out did yourself. I have missed your cooking.” He downed his glass and pour himself another. “Hunk have you always had a gift for cooking?”

Pidge glanced at the table and then picked out her chair. “Food does come from the land.” She moved to her seat and pulled a plate closer to her. “Food brings people together.” All conversation ceased as she spoke, but she ignored the others as she filled her plate with food. “He is the foundation.” She heard a few gasps, but ignored them, because all she did was state the obvious. 

Keith sat to her right, which drew her attention toward him and away from the group. “Hunk is a great chef and I’m sure he feels it is a gift.”

Nodding in agreement, Pidge picked up a water and took a sip. “Yes, Hunk is great at using the land.”

Ryan cleared his throat before coming to Hunk’s defense. “Hunk is more than someone who can use the land. He…”

Pidge picked at her food while cutting Ryan off. “Hunk knows that the Yellow Lion is the guardian spirit of the land. Land, or earth as we like to call it, holds the nutrients needed to replenish life and provides the foundation. He puts the needs of others above his own, he lifts us up and holds us together.” She picked at her plate more than eating. “Blue represents water, which draws together with compassion and forms a family. Water is fluid, but solidifies in the cold and changes to a gas with heat. It is also an element meant to bring us together.” Pidge paused to smell a weird looking fruit before taking a bite. Once she swallowed, she focused on Lance. “Red’s element is fire. Temperamental and bold, but how do we use fire and why is it important. Well, fire provides light in times of darkness and warmth to everyone around it.” Changing to look at Keith, she smiled. “Black represents the sky, from the gentle breeze to hurricane winds, it is the air we breathe. The sky channels the wind which moves us in direction to guide or lead us to our paths.” She focused back on her food and ate half her plate in silence.

Sliding into a chair to the left of Pidge, Nadia squinted at her. “Hey, Pidge. You left off Green, what about Green?”

Pidge couldn’t tell if she had challenged her or not. People were always a hard read for her, so she went with honesty. “Green is different because she is the forest, which is life itself. Green needs nutrients, a foundation, water, warmth, light and air. Green is intellectual and daring because she has to adapt to survive in different environments, but without the others she will die.”

Nadia nodded in agreement and glanced at Ryan’s camera. “Must be hard to lose Allura and then the lions.” 

Smiling for a moment, Pidge glanced from Ryan to Nadia and back. “They may not be the original lions, but we can build new ones. Actually, they would be different, not replacements, just different. We have different materials and design specs, but they would honor the intent of the originals. I have completed the simulations on Yellow, Blue and I finished Black this morning. Red is tricky and I need more time to code her. We should change their names to something that fits better though.” Looking toward her plate, she paused to determine her next thought. “Since they are slightly different, I figured the Paladins should name them. I mean it will help with the bonding process and who would want someone else’s name.” 

Keith’s voice snapped her attention back to him. “Is your new project building Lions? Here I thought you wanted to built new vehicles for James and his team.” 

“I did both. New lions for us. A set of land vehicles, a set of water vehicles and set for air. This way, if the Lions get into a tight spot, they would have support based on the environment. Plus the new machines would be more that James team can handle. We will need other teams as well.” She sat and filled her plate with new food. “Besides, I was getting tired with building tech for the Garrison, the Coalition and everyone else.” Putting food in her mouth, Pidge cased the room again. She found others grabbed food and drinks and were slowly taking seats.

Nadia stayed in her seat and waited for Pidge to eat more. After a few minutes, Nadia changed her tone to a happy yet questioning. “When do you sleep?”

Swallowing hard, she shifted her glasses on her face and fixated on the remain food on her plate. “Sleep is overrated. Besides I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” Pidge lifted a pink broccoli and sniffed it. “Smells like popcorn.” Then without hesitating, she popped it in her mouth. “Tastes like bananas.”

Axca let loose a laugh as she beamed at Pidge. “Have you ever tried Galra chocolate?” She smiled at her friends, then turned back to Pidge. “Keith says it tastes like putting, but your bodies react like it is Vodka.” Ezor and Axca rolled their eyes while Zethrid picked up her drink and downed it.

“Pidge?” Coran concentrated on her as he drew closer. “Did you think you can make new lions?”

As she glanced over her shoulder as she smirked. “Do you doubt me? The Green lion choose me for a reason.” She reached out and padded his arm. “I can’t bring her back, but I can do this.”

Lance drew attention with his loud voice and powerful words. “It’s hard letting her go. When did you finally accept the truth?” 

Pidge stated matter-a-fact without thinking about the time line. “Well, I thought a lot about what you said, but I worked toward bringing Allura back anyway. Be mad if you want, but I learned my lesson the hard way.” So absorbed in her thoughts, Pidge didn’t notice everyone went still again, including Keith and Lance. She played with her glass, running her finger over the rim with her right hand. “Three months before Allura day, everything changed.” She chuckled to herself as she speedup her movements with the glass. “I used to think the Lions showed us images to communicate, but that wasn’t it. I felt like Green turned everything up to high, because she wanted me to cope with the changes and I felt resistant to change. I didn’t piece it together until later. About a month before Allura day, everything became quiet. That night, when I talked to Keith after the Lions left, everything shifted sideways. While we traveled on the Atlas back to Earth, all the pieces began to make sense. I wasn’t upgrading the Green, I was building the foundation of her new Green sister. To be honest, I don’t sleep because I can’t stop thinking of the next thing.” She down her glass, then looked up and found everyone staring at her. “We are so close to the information, I got impatient today.” 

Matt smiled at her and then moved closer. “You used to tell me everything.” Standing behind her, Matt wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “I left and you were my baby sister and now you are a warrior genius who is still saving the universe.”

Pidge shrugged as she shifted to look at his face. “Well, I haven’t finished my analysis. Once we finish turning off the sensors and gathering data, I can explain more.”

“Katie, as your big brother, you should know that what you did today scared me.”

Her eyes shifted to Keith before she spoke. “It was not my intention to scare anyone. We are so close to the gaining all the pieces. I get the dreams now and how they are all connected. I’m sure I can explain this better in a few days.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay.  
> Computer error.  
> Sorry for typos.


	8. Questions and Answers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened after dinner? What is in store for Keith and Pidge?

After letting the conversation shift from Pidge, Keith quietly requested for them to speak in private. He felt eyes on them as she nodded and then made their exit. However, he couldn’t focus on his friends and family. Instead, we wanted to know what thoughts were in her head. As they walked, he wondered if he made the right decision in telling her that he didn’t want her to leave that night.

When they got to his room, Pidge followed him inside. “You wanted to talk, but you haven’t said anything. Are you mad at me?”

Chuckling he sat on the edge of his bed and patted the spot next to him. “I am gathering my thoughts.” He watched as she studied his room before he spoke softly to her. “Let’s discuss the dreams.” 

Cautiously she sat next to him, but she seemed stiff and left a small space between them. “Some of them are strange and I need to think through the dream to understand the meaning.”

“Well, I won’t hold anything against you and we can discuss what I see.”

Nodding to him, Pidge took a deep breath. “First, I saw an empty hanger at the Garrison when Green used to sit. Well, that is what I thought, but it was actually a ship we haven’t created yet. I call it the Dauntless. Then, I saw a boy in the cemetery. Followed by a firefighter that walked into a building that was on fire and died.” She relaxed as she described her dreams and she missed where Keith tensed up at the mention of the cemetery. “The quintessence nexus near a strange planetary formation holds the key to making the new lions’ symbiont within their new metal bodies. It’s not the originals, but Honerva and Alfor left notes as to how they bonded the quintessence to the trans-reality comet material. Similar to the trans-reality comet that hit Daibazaal, I have seen purple glowing gems scattered on a planet. I’m not sure of the location, but our quintessence is mirrored in the original Lions and in time we can call the correct quintessence to us from the nexus. At least, that is the theory.”

He shifted slightly to face her better while gathering his thoughts. “If we find this new quintessence nexus and the strange purple trans-reality comet, we have the foundation of our new Lions.” Rubbing his hand on his neck, Keith realized the dangerous path ahead. “How will we keep from making the same mistakes as Zarkon and Honerva?”

“In a dream I saw one red and one green space caterpillar floating among some yellow rocks. These rocks hold special properties that can help shield us from the effects of the trans-reality material.” With a sideways look solidified Pidge’s resolve to tell him the truth. “I want to talk with Coran, La-Sai of the Olkari, whichever Galra scientist you trust and Atalanta. I need to understand some things about combining technologies to protect us. Do you think it will work?”

“I think that whomever you want to bring in on this project will jump at the chance. Do you know why everyone fell silent as you talked tonight?” At her head shake of no, Keith continued. “First, they misunderstood what you were saying about Hunk. During the clarification, the way you described the Paladins, I’m not sure even Hunk or Lance had thought of it that way. You have a way of making others think harder or more accurately differently than they had in the past. All of us forget how the much thought you put into things we all take for granted.”

She laughed, then playfully pushed his arm. “I overthink everything. Yes, I rush into battle without thinking, but given enough time I replay every action, every thought to analyze what went right and what went wrong.” 

His fingers slid over the top of hers as we waited for eye contact. Once he received his reward, Keith tilted his head closer to hers. “It is okay to reflect on our actions, it is not okay to obsess on our mistakes. Also, no matter how good we are, we will suffer losses, but how we band together that is important. Even if those we know leave us, it doesn’t mean they are really gone.”

“You sound like the firefighter I met.”

Caressing her fingers, Keith smiled. “The fire fighter in your dream was my dad.” She snapped to full attention to him as he smiled back. “I was the boy in the graveyard standing at his grave.”

“He wanted me to tell you he is proud of the man you became. He…” She stopped talking because Keith leaned forward and kissed her. She pulled back after a minute as a tear fell down her cheek, “He loved you and wished that…”

“Pidge, I know he wanted to be in my life, but he had a responsibility to protect others. I am the man I am, because of him. Because Shiro made sure I got into the Garrison. Because your dad supported Shiro’s decision. Because my mom and Kolivan want me to succeed.” He wiped the tear away with his free hand, then put his hand under her chin. “None of us have made it to this point alone. We must honor those that came before us. We must honor those we lost. It is how we grow.”

Shifting closer, Pidge placed her hand on his chest. “You sound like him. I’m sorry you lost him.” Immediately after he moved his hand over hers, Pidge leaned in. “I’m starting to see what she saw in him.”

Smirking, Keith kept eye contact and brought his lips closer to hers. “You mean wiser Katie saw in no hair Keith.”

“He had hair; it was just short.” Her eyes flicked to his lips and back to his eyes. “Did you notice the length of her hair? I never thought I would have long hair again. I gave that up when I ran away from home. I did look happy. As for you, mullet or pony tail, they are too sexy to give up. Guess you had reasons.”

Keith’s eyes danced with emotions meant only for her. “My scar makes me dangerous and my hair makes me sexy. Anything else you want to confess?”

Staring into his eyes, she let down her guard. “Seeing you in a towel does something to me, I feel defenseless. Blame that Altea pool in the Castle.” Her cheeks flamed as realization struck, she spoke aloud causing her to lean back. “What I mean is…”

“It’s sexy when you manhandle me.” He waited in his original spot for her to relax. “Well, more precisely when act as if you are enjoying yourself, taking initiative.” He paused a moment, then smirked. “Then, you get all hyper and say something profound and the rest of us get a glimpse at what goes on inside that head of yours. You never act better than us, it’s clear you are smart, it’s just that you are willing to share knowledge.” Her fingers tightened around his shirt, causing rapid breathing in Keith.

She glanced at the other side of the bed, then watched his face closely. “I’m at a disadvantage when it comes to you. I can’t seem to keep things to myself.”

Keith leaned forward as he squeezed her hand. Rotating and pulling himself farther on the bed, Keith pulled her with him. “I have a secret.” He pulls her against his chest, then runs her hand along her back. “I tell you things that I would normally keep to myself and I feel things growing between us. It was slow at first, but between the night the Lions left and the night I sent the box, you became everything.”

She whispered as she snuggled into his left side. “I love you, Keith.”

“Pidge, I love you too.” His replied causing her to tense up. “Whatever happens, we are a team and you are not alone. We will figure this out.” He kissed the top of her head before pulling a blanket over both of them. “Knowing what I know now, I would send you that box in a heartbeat.” 

Pidge inched closer to his face until her lips were close to his. “I should go.”

“You want to stay, then stay, you want to go, I will not stop you.” His eyes focused on hers as he spoke, then he leaned in closer. “I know you want to get the dreams off your chest, but you might get emotional. I won’t tell anyone and I won’t judge you.” When shock crossed her eyes, he knew he spoke the truth. “I saw Zarkon on Daibazaal, but I’m betting you saw Trigel.” After nodding yes, but before speaking, Keith dove into the root of her problem. “In honor of the 127,098 brave warriors that stood against tyranny, the quest for freedom is won through sacrifice.” Tears threatened to fall as she snuggled into him, he reacted by stroking her back. “I felt so helpless trying to reach you. Just like the dream I head on Trigel’s home world where I was shot.”

“I saw the outline of lovers cuddling for warmth instead. Now, I believe it to be Atalanta and Melark hiding their time together, not us.” Shifting her weight, Pidge sat up with her back to him. “I saw the beginning of the meeting on the Atlas between the Galra commanders. Acxa said something cryptic about you and I didn’t understand until it actually happened.” She paused a moment, then changed topics. “What about you? Anything different?”

He chuckled and mumbled to himself causing her to turn and face him. “You left off several.” Shaking her head no, neither of them were convinced of her denial. “What about a certain incident with a towel and a wall?” She blushed as he sat up and drew her closer. “What about foreplay at the farm or in your lab?”

Panic in her voice, Pidge defended herself. “What, towel yes. Farm, no way. You’re making that up. If anyone in Lance’s family saw us...” 

Keith’s eyes sparkled with mischief as he spoke. “Well, how about some fun we have here?” Before she could respond, his lips captured hers while he pulled her closer. His tongue ran over her lips causing her to deepen the kiss. As they explored each other’s mouth, Keith’s hands roamed her body while his heart raced.

She broke the kiss and pushed him back on to the bed. “What has gotten into you? I’ve never seen you like this.”

He laughed hard at her words and took a few moments to compose himself. “Pidge.”

“What?” This time when he laughed, he reminded her of one of her dreams.

“You asked what had gotten into me and my response is you.” His eyes never strayed from her as reached out to pull her close again, but she didn’t move. “Come closer Katie.” He held out his hand again, but this time he waited for her to come to him. “After my dad died, I gave up on making connections with others.” She took his hand and he rewarded her with a smile. “Even as a Paladin, I kept my distance at first.” He pulled her to him and kept her there. “The more I learn about you the harder it gets.” He paused to take a long slow breath. “Honestly, when you opened up to me on the Atlas, something changed. I changed.”

Her fingers grazed his chest as she whispered. “Because you saw me cry?”

“No.” his hand slid over hers and he squeezed it gently. “Because for the first time, I felt like we could be friends. I felt excited that we could be close.” His eyes met hers before he spoke. “I grew attached to you in a way I haven’t with anyone else.” When her eyes widened, he rolled his. “After I left Earth, I felt lost. My mom kept asking why. I didn’t know what to tell her.”

Her eyes narrowed again as she got lost in thought.

Her silence urged him to continue. “One day I was moving some boxes from my time as a Paladin. Acxa and my mom were helping until I pulled out the puzzle box. I hadn’t noticed their reaction. I was lost in the memory of when we found it.” He smiled as he snuggled closer to her. “I told them about how excited you got and what Coran thought the box meant.” Closing his eyes, he waited a few moments before he squeezed her hand again. “A month or so later, we visited Earth and we hung out. I had a great time and next thing I know everyone started to ask me about our relationship.”

“It got worse after that.” She chuckled into his chest a moment, then added. “Let me guess, then your mom saw us working on your bike and thought the wrong thing.”

“No.” Keith stated matter a fact tone. “She knew better than I did. I was falling hard. Acxa and her discussed how long it would before I made a move or ended up doing something crazy like…”

Her hand slid to his face and forced him to look at her. “Like send me an engagement present…”

“Or convince you to lay down next to me in bed and letting you touch my face.” He stated with a small smile on his lips. “Which still keeps me up some nights. Thinking about what could have happened if I was honest about how I felt sooner. By Galra standards, we were already dating when I sent the box. It is a big step to have someone in your bed, much less touching them in an intimate way. I was breaking the rules with you.”

“She okay with me as a future daughter in law?”

He pulled her body closer, so her face was next to his. “Zethrid and Ezor threaten to chop off my balls if I was ever mean to you. Acxa wants you to be on the ship to keep me from getting mood swings (she states because I miss you too much). My mom wants to learn more about hacking a mainframe and wants to hear more of my time on the castle. Also, if you hinted toward wanting to stay on the ship for a while, they would kick me out of my room if you desired this one and I would need to find a new space. Otherwise, they wouldn’t care if we were together here. Everyone on this ship knows what you mean to me and they won’t let any harm come to you.” After a deep breath, he whispered his next comment. “Kolivan warned me that if I didn’t make a move and I lost my chance, I would never forgive myself. Shiro grabbed my shoulder and said I should listen to the wise people around me.”

Pidge matched his breathing and spoke with a calm demeanor. “When did you talk to Shiro?”

Smiling Keith gently squeezed her as reassurance. “After he dropped you guys at Earth, he came back to deliver something to Kolivan. They were talking about losing the lions and how our lives would change.”

“Mom said we should get married in Italy. Dad said definitely not.” She smirked when he frowned. “He said if given the option I would make you wait years and it isn’t fair to you.” The look in her eyes reflected mischief. “He also said, you are a good influence on me because when you would visit Earth, I would remember to take breaks from my work and make time to eat.”

“What about Matt, he okay with his baby sister being engaged?” Keith questioned.

“No.” She stated in a matter of fact tone. “He wanted to be married first. But if I have to be with someone, at least you could keep me out of trouble.” She said with humor in her voice.

Keith kissed her before teasing. “Or at least, I would help you keep a low profile.”

Worry crossed her eyes and was quickly gone. “We almost complete with this part. What will happen next?”

“I’m sure we can figure this out together.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I had two chapters almost complete. Then my computer died taking the files with it (Yes, I hadn't backed them up). I got a replacement battery and it worked fine for two days. Then it broke again, but I had this chapter written, I just needed to edit.  
> Then my car battery died. Yes the car I drive to work. So I had to get that fixed.
> 
> I am back up and running and hope to publish another chapter next week, but I will not guarantee that. I will guarantee that I will finish this story.  
> Please let me know if it is still acceptable.  
> Stay safe and happy in 2020. It is almost over.  
> SMOD.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Keith / Pidge attempt. 
> 
> I have a plan for a bigger story, but would any of you like this?  
> Please let me know.


End file.
